Thursday, October 1, 2026
aturday, June 3rd stood out in a week marked by rain and overcast weather, as if the organizers of Oceanside's Relay For Life had been granted a special order of sunshine and blue skies.
Tagged on twitter as #OsideNYRelay, the event has nearly $84,000 thus far, according to the Oceanside School District, which coordinated the event with support from Jeanine Donahue of the American Cancer Society. It was the second time that the school district had hosted a Relay event; the first one was in 2009. Fundraising will continue through August.
Pat Turk, Student Activities Coordinator at Oceanside High School, led the district's team to coordinate Oceanside, NY Relay for Life as a community-wide effort. According to Mr. Turk, more than 750 people comprising 40 teams showed up to walk the high school track with family, friends and colleagues in support of the American Cancer Society's signature fundraiser. That figure did not include unregistered attendees.
Festivities began in the late afternoon and continued through midnight. "[it was a] feel good day all around," according to Turk, with several local bands made up of current and former OHS students providing music to inspire walkers. But the Luminaria Ceremony was the highlight of the fundraiser.
"It was wonderful to see everyone come together on the track, surrounded by the Luminaria," said Mr. Turk. "It was a beautiful sight in a wonderful, giving community and it's really what Oceanside is all about."
