Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Supported by "Team Tomarrow" at the 2013 Plant City Relay For Life, cancer fighter David Butcher is backed by "Be the Match" in his search for a bone marrow donor.
Cancer fighter David Butcher and his wife, Anne, on leave from her job as pastor at Crystal Lake United Methodist Church in Lakeland, joined purple-shirted supporters at the 2013 Plant City Relay For Life at Plant City High School. There, the Plant City couple discussed Butcher's role as a "poster child" for Be the Match, in whose name "Team Tomarrow" was raising money at the overnight American Cancer Society fundraiser. Diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia on January 9, Butcher said he is looking for a bone marrow match. "It was a little shaky at first," he said about his diagnosis reaction, "but we've been very blessed to have three grown kids and seven grandkids." It's a life well-lived as much as it is a fight worth taking that …
The Plant City community paid tribute to cancer victim Megan Carpenter at the 2013 Plant City Relay For Life. Carpenter was a student at Plant City High School when cancer struck.
Fairy princess makeovers were the order of the night at the 2013 Plant City Relay For Life, where tables adorned in pink, manned by volunteers dressed in pink, punctuated a community's commitment to never forget Megan Carpenter and her young life well lived. "She was very involved with Plant City High School and she was just an amazing girl who needs to be remembered," said Kelly Drake, 16, a junior at the school Carpenter attended. Carpenter died in 2006 at age 17. Her long battle with cancer ended just days after community fundraisers were held for her and two other Plant City teenagers battling cancer. According to Carpenter's obituary, she fought a cancer battle that lasted five- and a-half years. This sweet angel showed everyone …
Saturday, April 20, 2013
The American Cancer Society's Relay For Life at Plant City High School wraps up today, April 20, after a Friday night lineup of events, booths, survivors and volunteers.
The 2013 Plant City Relay For Life drew a determined crowd to Plant City High School for the overnight April 19-20 fundraiser. Here's a collection of photographs that give testament to the hard work of volunteers, participants and survivors who came together to raise funds and awareness for the fight against cancer. Do you have a photo to add? Click the "Upload Photos and Videos" link above. Were you at the Plant City Relay For Life? Tell us about your experiences there in the comment box below. ______________ Check back with Brandon Patch for additional photographs and stories on the 2013 Plant City Relay For Life, including coverage of the "Crazy Hat" competition, remembering Megan Carpenter and the story of "Team Tomarrow," featuring …
Friday, April 19, 2013
The overnight 2013 Seffner Relay For Life fundraiser at Armwood High School is set to start 6 p.m. tonight, April 19. So, too, the Relay For Life at Plant City High School.
The American Cancer Society's 2013 Relay For Life season in Eastern Hillsborough County wraps up tonight, April 19, at both Armwood and Plant City high schools. The 2013 Seffner Relay For Life is set to kick off 6 p.m. with at least 20 teams and about 280 registered participants. The 2013 Plant City Relay For Life is set to kick off 6 p.m. with 67 teams 1,018 participants. These are the final two Relays for Eastern Hillsborough County, following fundraisers earlier this month and last at Riverview, Newsome, Brandon and Bloomingdale high schools. According to Sara Vinzant, community representative for the Southeast Hillsborough Unit of the American Cancer Society, the three Relays at Riverview, Newsome and Bloomingdale alone have raised …
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
The American Cancer Society's 2013 Relay For Life season in Eastern Hillsborough County started strong with events at Riverview and Newsome high schools. Events are coming at Armwood, Bloomingdale, Brandon and Plant City high schools.
Successful events at Newsome and Riverview high schools marked the opening round of the American Cancer Society's 2013 Relay For Life season in Eastern Hillsborough County, with close to $190,000 raised at these two Relays alone, according to the latest online account. Additional Relays for Eastern Hillsborough County are scheduled in the weeks ahead for Armwood, Bloomingdale, Brandon and Plant City high schools. Collectively, as of 5 a.m. March 23, the six sites in Eastern Hillsborough County had reported 249 teams, 3,634 participants and $274,045.14 raised. (See chart below.) That represents a $17,400 increase since the last Patch posting, March 23. In reading the chart below, keep in mind that final tallies for Relay events don't come…
Sunday, February 24, 2013
The 2013 Florida Strawberry Festival Queen and her court were in full regalia at the Madonia Agricultural Center for a media party in advance of this year's festival, which runs from Feb. 28 to March 10.
Greeting visitors to the 2013 Florida Strawberry Festival Media Party at the Evelyn and Batista Madonia Agricultural Center on Saturday, Feb. 23, were this year's Florida Strawberry Festival Queen, Kelsey Fry, and her court. The 17-year-old Fry, a senior at Plant City High School, was raised in Brandon, where she attended Yates Elementary School. In the eighth grade, she moved with her family to Plant City, where she attended Tomlin Middle School. Her job now, as the queen, is to support the mission of the Florida Strawberry Festival, which in 2013 is celebrating its 78th year, having been in hiatus for six years during the time period of World War II. "I get to represent Plant City and I get to be a positive role model for all the young…
Sunday, October 28, 2012
It was the last home game of the season for the Brandon High School Eagles, who hosted the Plant City Raiders at E.F. McLane Stadium on Oct. 26. Life in the stands and from the sidelines are caught in these photos, snapped under the Friday night lights.
Snapped under the Friday night lights at McLane Stadium in Brandon, on Oct. 26, are these photographs of life in the stands and from the sidelines at the Brandon Eagles versus Plant City Raiders football game. The Eagles fell two points shy of their second victory of the season while the Raiders tied their season up at four wins and four losses, including, in league play, two wins and two losses. Brandon's seventh season loss came after Plant City's fourth-quarter, come-from-behind drive, capped by a reported 35-yard field goal kicked by Plant City Raider Jorge Navarrette. ______________ Like what you read? Don't miss out on Brandon Patch news. Sign up for our daily newsletter and support your local news. ______________ BRANDON FOOTBALL …
Saturday, October 27, 2012
The Brandon Eagles fell 2 points shy of their second win of the season, bowing to the Plant City Raiders, 22-20, at McLane Stadium in Brandon on Oct. 26.
The Brandon Eagles came close to their second win of the season but fell short by 2 points in their loss at home, Oct. 26, to Plant City. The Raiders scored a 22-20 victory, bringing their season record to 4-4 overall and 2-2 in league play. The Eagles (1-7 overall, 1-3 in league play) were coming off their first win of the season, with a 16-8 victory Oct. 18 over the Riverview Sharks. The Eagles against Plant City scored more than two touchdowns in one game for the first time this season. "I'm not judging my season by wins and losses," said Brandon High's principal, Carl Green, from the sidelines at McLane Stadium at the Plant City game. "For me, the year's been a really good one for us as far as a developing year for moving forward." …
Monday, April 23, 2012
Facing an unexpected diagnosis and then the fight for her life, Kim Mitchell said she learned a lot from the colon cancer that threatened to end her days in less than a year's time. She walked the survivor's lap at the Relay For Life at Plant City High.
It's been a year of shock for Kim Mitchell, whose battle against colon cancer started with a Stage 4 diagnosis after a routine hysterectomy. "It was like somebody just knocked the wind out of me," Mitchell said, at the Plant City Relay For Life on April 20, at Plant City High School. "I had no symptoms, it didn't run in my family. It took awhile to sink in. I didn't think I heard it right." Second and third opinions backed up the initial diagnosis and at one point Mitchell was told she was likely to have only six to eight months to live. Her battle against cancer included an intensive, six-month round of chemotherapy — three times a week, every two weeks — and surgery to remove a foot of her colon. Then, a "miraculous" declaration from …
The 2012 Relay For LIfe season in Southeastern Hillsborough County ended at Plant City High School, where more than 80 teams committed to fight the fight to rid the world of cancer.
Another year, another mega-showing for the Relay For Life of Plant City, which makes Barbara Franques, whose husband died from cancer, a very happy woman. A long-time employee of the Hillsborough County School District, from which she retired as an area director, Franques has long been a key supporter and advocate for the Plant City Relay, one of the largest in the state. Last year’s event topped $270,000 and again, this year, the Plant City Relay For Life, April 20-21 at Plant City High School, was expected to top that number as well. That’s a lot of dollars to combat cancer. “What’s so amazing is the commitment of the groups that contribute to our cause,” Franques said, noting not only the seven Relay For Life events in Southeastern …
Kristi
9:31 pm on Thursday, May 3, 2012
Kim that is wonderful!! I do have a question for you; my father was diagnosed with IV colon cancer a two years ago. He has had the sugery, radioemblization, and several rounds of chemo, with all the different kinds for colon cancer and nothning is working! I was wondering what chemo did you use? His oncologist is stumped as well. more ›