Ana-Lab donates $3000 to Kilgore Relay for Life

Ana-Lab, the testing company owned by Dr. Charles Whiteside of Kilgore, has once again stepped forward to donate $3,000 to Kilgore Relay For Life. Ana-Lab has been a upper echelon sponsor for Kilgore Relay For Life every year since the event began.

Dr. Whiteside, in making the donation, said that the cancer research efforts that come from Kilgore Relay For Life are very important. That is one of the reasons he helps sponsor the event every year.

"Also, the fact that I am a cancer survivor and there are people on my staff that are cancer survivors underscore the importance of raising the dollars that will find the cure," he said.

Rachel Conner, Relay For Life Chairman, said she is very appreciative of Ana-Lab for their monetary donation, but she added the company does so much more to make Relay For Life a success.

"Due to the generosity of Dr. Whiteside and Ana-Lab, we can hold our meetings in his facility which is very nice," Conner said. "Ana-Lab, from the first year, has been a key company that does whatever it can to help Relay For Life be a success. We thank Dr. Whiteside and his staff for their continued support."

And, Dr. Whiteside was, in turn, complimentary of Relay For Life and the job it does to raise money for cancer research.

"We all know that nothing comes easy and you have to work at anything to make it successful," Dr. Whiteside said. "I feel the Relay For Life committees, past and present, have worked hard to make this event enjoyable as well as successful. Ana-Lab is proud to help sponsor this festivity."

The Kilgore Relay For Life event is set for Friday, April 27 and Saturday, April 28 at the Kilgore Youth Softball and Soccer Complex. The festivity begins at 7 p.m. Friday night and runs until 7 a.m. on Saturday. During that time, participants will walk around a designated and lighted course, participate in certain fun events and take part in the Luminary Ceremony which begins at 9 p.m. This moving and emotional ceremony remembers those who have lost their battle with cancer and honors those who are still winning the war.

The public is invited to come out and enjoy the fund raiser. There will be refreshments for sale, and the public will find the activities enjoyable to watch and/or participate in.

The goal for this year's Relay For Life is $115,000, ahead of the $103,000 that was collected last year.

The Relay For Life is this year named in memory of Jo and Vi Wicki, long-time civic workers and Kilgore residents. The couple was extremely active in supporting the American Cancer Society, and their estate has left a sizeable donation to Kilgore's efforts to fund cancer research.