73°
Who are the Purple Hearts Team?
“We are Mothers, Fathers, daughters, sons, husbands, wives, friends and survivors!” said Roxanne Fales, a colon cancer survivor and one of the prime movers behind the event. “We’ve come together to relieve others who have been affected by this terrible disease.
“Cancer has no bias and sadly no one is immune to it,” said Jacqueline Inglesias, who owns the popular Cana WNY Café. “We’ve united to do our part in a cause that eventually touches everyone.”
“Relay For Life” is a family-friendly gala aimed at uniting those touched in some way by cancer, as teams compete at raising money for the ACS.
Last year’s winner? The Purple Hearts, with more than $15,000 — beating out nearly five dozen other squads.
The 30-member team is led by Fales, 42, who’s set to take the Survivor’s Lap victory walk along the pier again this year. Fales, a remarkable North Bergen native, has a 10-year-old daughter with autism-related “Rett Syndrome,” as well as twin 7-year-old girls.
Expect plenty to do and see, including clowns, a water-balloon toss, team tug-of-war, costume theme laps and local bands playing throughout the day — among them, cover band Not For Nothing, alt-rock group Turnpike South, pop-rock quartet Emergency Now, classic rock cover band Mad Dog Mary and Radiohead tribute group Fitter, Happier.
But there’s more:
* Classes in belly dancing, salsa and yoga;
* Spa massage services;
* A jewelry Sale
* For kids: face painting and washable tattoos
* Team t-shirts and wristbands;
* Healthy lunches & snacks, refreshments, and “lots of goodies,” Fales said, “available ALL DAY.”
Then there are the raffles, for gift certificates to Sabor Latin Bistro (either the Edgewater of Hawthorne location); Cana WNY; Big Heart Caterers; and Guttenberg’s Red Carpet Spa, an oasis of luxury whose operator, Jacqui Phillips, has often been featured here on CLIFFVIEW PILOT.
Look for the Purple Team tent!
If you can’t make it, you can still help by making a tax-deductible donation to: www.purpleheartsforlife.com
Click here to follow Daily Voice South Passaic and receive free news updates.
