Outside it may have been raining last night, but inside the Mount Airy Christian Church gym, Relay for Life committee members created a party atmosphere for their open house expo.

“This is the first taste of Relay 2010,” said Giny Haynes, American Cancer Society senior community manager for Surry County.

Committee members for the Relay for Life of Surry-Mount Airy donned party hats and tiaras in honor of the new campaign for the American Cancer Society, “the official sponsor of birthdays.”

“Every year that you survive, you get a new birthday, and that’s a great thing,” said Cindy Ward, who helped man the survivorship table at the open house.

Haynes said, “We are very excited about this campaign. More people are surviving now because of the work that’s being done.”

At the 2010 Relay for Life on May 21 and 22, participants will get to participate in a relay to help raise money and awareness for the American Cancer Society.

Dee Smith of Mount Airy is a two-time cancer survivor. She participates in the relay each year and encourages other survivors to do the same.

“So that they don’t feel alone, to join the rest of us. We are survivors. We need to feel good about surviving,” Smith urged.

“That’s why we relay — because of the survivors,” said Roxann Moore, one of the volunteer event chairs.

The 2010 relay will be held at Mount Airy High School, and the local goal is to raise $130,000. Last year the Surry-Mount Airy region raised $125,343.

Even with a fumbling economy, Haynes hopes people will continue to strongly support the relay.

“We’ve seen that people continue to be very, very generous. I mean, people are still being diagnosed. That’s not stopping. We want more feet on the track,” Haynes said.

The local Relay for Life committee held an open house last year as well. Haynes sees this as an opportunity for team captains to get information on the upcoming rally and how to get started.

Tables were set up with information about each aspect of the relay — fundraising, survivorship, luminaries, marketing, missions and more. Haynes said they had a good turnout in spite of the rain.

Local team captains were encouraged to attend the open house. Each leader coordinates a team of at least 10 people who participate in the relay and hold fundraisers for it. Last year the Surry-Mount Airy effort had 45 teams, and each team member is encouraged to raise at least $100.

Haynes said, “What we say is it’s not about the money, but it’s about what the money can do.”

To raise the money, teams come up with their own fundraisers. Dianne Johnson, volunteer event chair, said, “They do a wide variety of very creative things.”

Haynes added, “The sky’s the limit, as long as it’s legal and in good taste.”

For more information on the local relay or how to get involved, people may contact the volunteer event chairs. Moore can be reached at 789-3209, and Johnson can be reached at 789-2495.

People can also get information online at relayforlife.org/surrymtairy. On the Web site, people can start a team, join a team, or sign-up as an individual.

Another upcoming event that will raise money for the American Cancer Society is the Bark for Life on Nov. 21 at Fisher River Park. This is a relay for dogs, and a golden retriever who is a cancer survivor will be the grand marshal along with her owner. For more information on this event, call 469-1661.