Relay for Life kicks off Friday

Relay for Life teams plan to establish team sites along the Relay path Friday night. Local residents are invited to enjoy a progressive dinner and entertainment as they visit the tents. An assortment of bands and wacky contests will also be available on the main stage through midnight.

If you're looking for a night out on the town with a variety food and entertainment options, head for Dyersburg State Community College on Friday.

The 15th annual Dyer County Relay for Life is scheduled to start there at 7 p.m.

While the event has traditionally been an American Cancer Society fund-raiser, organizers are taking a different approach this year. They're focusing on community participation and they want everyone to come.

The evening will include musical performances, a pizza-eating competition, a game of musical chairs, an egg toss, cheerleaders doing their routines, face painting, a Guitar Hero contest, a karaoke contest, putt-putt golf, carnival games, an inflatable jumper and even cricket spitting.

Relay teams plan to sell an amazing assortment of foods, including deep-fried turkey, Italian specialties, Cajun food, bratwurst, grilled chicken, hamburgers, hot dogs, corndogs, baked beans, potato salad, ice cream floats, snow cones, cookies and more.

Relay for Life teams plan to erect tent sites along the Relay path between the DSCC Administration Building and Okeena Park. Team members will take turns walking laps on the pathway, which will be lined with luminaries lit in honor or in memory of persons with cancer.

Solemn occasions will honor those who battle cancer. A cancer survivor reception will be held at 6 p.m. in the Okeena Park pavilion near the pool. Then, survivors will kick off the Relay by taking the first lap around the Relay path.

Then, at 10 p.m., cancer patients will be remembered during a luminary ceremony. Penny Guthrie, a cancer survivor, is scheduled to speak. Jill Jones and the Dyer County High School Choir will provide musical performances. The public may participate by lighting candles.

The Relay could feel a bit like a trip back to the 1980s. In honor of the Relay's 25th anniversary nationwide, this year's theme harkens back "TV Shows of the 1980s." All of the teams have been encouraged to adopt a 1980s television show as the basis for their tent designs and activities.

So, put on your mini-skirts and leggings or run a comb through your mullet. It's time for a totally tubular event.

The night's schedule follows:

* 6-11 p.m. - Lifeline Blood Services will accept blood donations in its Bloodmobile near the main stage.

* 6 p.m. - Cancer survivor reception will be held in the pavilion by the Okeena Park pool.

* 7 p.m. - Opening ceremony will be held. Relay Chairman Lindsey Ford will welcome the crowd. Master of Ceremonies Jeff Jones will introduce Dyer County Mayor Richard Hill and Dyersburg Mayor John Holden. Pastor Larry Blakeburn of Cumberland Presbyterian Church will give the opening prayer. The Dyersburg High School Choir, led by Cooper Patterson, will sing the national anthem. Cancer survivors will walk the first lap while the First Baptist Church Men's Chorale, led by Rodney Henry, performs.

* 6:30 p.m. - DHS cheerleaders and Blue Brothers will perform on the main stage.

* 8-10 p.m. - MAGI, a six-piece band, will play oldies but goodies.

* 8:30 p.m. - Pizza-eating contest will be held.

* 9 p.m. - Water balloon toss is scheduled.

* 9:30 p.m. - Chubby Bunny contest planned.

* 10 p.m. - Luminary ceremony. Easton Cecil, Will Armour, Preston Hill and Nick Ruddell will provide a trumpet serenade. The crowd will light candles. Jill Jones will provide a musical performance. Penny Guthrie will speak. The DCHS Choir, led by Rachel Hutchinson, will perform. Pastor Robert Craig from First United Methodist Church will give the closing prayer.

* 10:20-11 p.m. - Wildwood Express, a five-piece bluegrass band, will perform.

* 10:30 p.m. - A game of musical chairs will be held.

* 11 p.m. - DCHS cheerleaders perform and a tug-o-war is planned.

* 11:10 p.m.-midnight - Roses Unread, a five-piece rock band, will perform.

* 11:30 p.m. - A Hula Hoop contest is planned.

* Midnight - An egg toss will be held.

* Midnight-12:30 a.m. - Matthew Gant will perform.

* 12:30 a.m. - Awards ceremony will be held.

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Seeking something special during the Dyer County Relay for Life?

One of the Relay teams is likely to have it.

Here's a guide to the food, activities and give-aways available at each tent site.

* Modern Woodmen of America: Selling bottled water, soda, barbecue bologna sandwiches, grilled chicken sandwiches, Red Dog sandwiches, red slaw, chips and hot wings.

* SRG Global: Selling funnel cakes, nachos and cheese, popcorn, pickles, candy and canned drinks. Conducting a cakewalk.

* Security Bank's MASH unit: Selling deep-fried corndogs, deep-fried pickles, water and lemonade. Selling: Trojan and Choctaw canvases.

* Lupo's Italian Restaurante: Selling Lupo's cuisine.

* First Citizens National Bank: Selling hamburgers, chips, soda and strawberry shortcake.

* Dyersburg State Community College: Selling ice cream floats and coffee floats. Activities include Nintendo Wii bowling and putt-putt golf.

* Dyersburg Regional Medical Center: Selling root beer, hot wings, peanuts, hamburgers and hot dogs.

* Holice Powell School: Selling popcorn, drinks and hot dogs. Activities include pictures, a cakewalk, carnival games, face painting and tattoos.

* National Turkey Federation: Selling deep-fried turkey. Activities include a gun give-away.

* J.C. Penney: Selling hot dogs, chips and popcorn. Activities include quilt and stool give-aways.

* United KAT Line Striping: Selling burgers, hot dogs, polish sausage, fries, nachos, chips, desserts, drinks and glow bracelets. Activities include an inflatable jumper, face painting, kids' games and a grill and cooler give-away.

* LinCare: Selling barbecue bologna sandwiches and drinks. Activities include a basket give-away.

* Cotillion Club: Selling snow cones and chocolate chip cookies. Activities include a moon bounce and Blinkie sales.

* Java Café and the Shrimp Shack: Selling Cajun food, coffee, smoothies, homemade ice cream and fried pies. Activities include a bluegrass band, chainsaw carving, cricket spitting and tickets to "Fight Cancer Cajun Style."

* Three Oaks Middle School: Selling snow cones, barbecue bologna sandwiches, chips and drinks.

* Affordable Exterminating: Activities include a quilt give-away.

* Wal-Mart's Care Bears team: Selling hamburgers, hot dogs, drinks, baked goods, homemade ice cream and suckers. Activities include cupcake decorating, photos with a Care Bear, face painting and a magic show.

* Fifth Consolidated School: Activities include a dance, dance revolution.

* Sweet Peppers Deli: Hosting a Headbangers Ball with a Guitar Hero contest, a hair-band matchup game, temporary tattoos and a guitar give-away. The team also will sell cookies and drinks.

* WASL: Selling bratwurst, cheese cubes, Aquafina, Sobe Lifewater and soft drinks. Activities include the SL-100 Karaoke Contest, with the top three winners competing Sept. 8 at the Dyer County Fair.

* First United Methodist Church: Selling ice cream and brownies.

* Finley Elementary School: Selling grilled chicken legs and thighs, baked beans, potato salad, baked goods and drinks. Activities include children's games.

* Dr. Kenton Busch's team: Selling popcorn and lemonade. Activities include a grill give-away and children's games.

* First State Bank: Selling barbecue bologna sandwiches, hamburgers and hot dogs.

* First South Bank: Selling Coke and root beer floats.

* Briggs and Stratton: Selling foot-long corndogs, nachos and cheese, cotton candy, freeze pops, coffee and tea. Activities include a Wheel of Fortune game, face painting tattoos, Fun Spinner art and a lawnmower give-away.

* Pilgrim Rest Baptist Church: Selling potatoes, bologna, hamburgers and ice cream.