Dr. Liz Rhea
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They walk for family and friends and anyone who has fought and survived or fought and lost a battle with cancer.
Mostly, they walk for a cure.
“We walk because we have family members who had cancer,” said Mary Ann Maynard, team captain for the CUREsaders. “We walk for them and we walk for a cure.”
Maynard walks for an uncle, an aunt and a sister-in-law.
The CUREsaders are one of 25 teams who will walk for the American Cancer Society at the Relay For Life of Rutherford County from 7 p.m.-7 a.m. June 5-6 at Richard Siegel Park, 1515 Cherry Lane.
That night they will all walk for the 2009 Relay for Life Honorary Chair Dr. Liz Rhea.
Rhea has spent her life in the service of others, which she didn’t stop with a cancer diagnosis in 2002.
“Along with many other wonderful volunteers, Dr. Rhea did the original leg work to make Relay For Life in Rutherford County a model event for other counties,” event chairwoman Sherry Lemerand said.
Last year the Relay for Life raised more than $90,000 for the American Cancer Society, partly because of the time and effort Rhea has devoted to the cause. For more than 10 years, Rhea served as the sponsorship chair.
“Dr. Liz Rhea was chosen for honorary chair because when you look back on the 16 years Relay For Life has been in Murfreesboro and Rutherford County, Dr. Rhea has been one of the many faces behind the success of Relay,” Lemerand said.
Since Rhea retired to Murfreesboro in 1992, she has made the community better by serving on no less than 24 boards of nonprofit organizations – from the Center for Domestic Violence and American Cancer Society to the St. Rose School and the Blue Raider Athletic Association.
Rhea was honored for her volunteer work twice last year with Humanitarian of the Year awards from the YMCA and Noon Rotary Club of Murfreesboro.
During her working career as a radiologist, she and her husband Creighton volunteered their spare time in small communities that had no such doctors.
“One person can make a difference,” Rhea said. “I’ve tried to be an example.”
She’s been an example in her volunteer work and in her attitude since being diagnosed with uterine cancer.
“I hope someone can take hope and faith in what I’m going through,” she said, adding she wouldn’t have made it as long without the support and prayers from her friends and family.
“You can sit at home and feel bad or you can go out and feel bad,” she continued. “You just have to believe it’s for the best. Stay positive and trust in the Lord.”
Michelle Willard can be contacted at 615-869-0816 or mwillard@murfreesboropost.com. |
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