Students, Locals Present Valentines for Cancer Patients

Members of the community and a San Marino city councilman gathered Friday at Methodist Hospital in Arcadia to present more than 500 valentines written in English and Chinese.

The notes of encouragement for cancer patients were collected from local students and are part of the American Cancer Society's upcoming Relay for Life. The 24-hour charity event is set for April 16 and features teams of participants who camp out in Temple City's Live Oak Park and alternate running or walking laps around the track.

This is the ACS's flagship fundraiser that generates money for cancer research and patient services. Each year more than 3.5 million people take part in nationwide Relays.

Councilman Richard Sun, who is a dentist and on the hospital's board of directors, said he and his children intend to enter as a Relay team.

Sun has lost several family members to cancer and decided to get involved after meeting in October with San Marino resident Vivian Chan, a cancer survivor and an organizer of the Southern California Chinese Relay for Life, state Assemblyman and Michael D. Driebe, president of the Methodist Hospital Foundation.

"Even though today there is tremendous progress to deal with cancer, we still have not totally overcome the disease like we've overcome small pox, measles, etc.," said Sun. "So I would like get involved to see if someday we can see this disease disappear for good."

Relay for Life Director Nathan McCusker had a similar outlook.

"We hope to eventually eliminate cancer as a major health problem, but my goal is to get as many people involved in the fight against cancer as possible," he said.

Driebe welcomed the support and acknowledged the efforts of the local Chinese community.

"The Chinese Relay for Life folks are an important way for us to help educate and support the Chinese community about issues like cancer," said Driebe. "All that we do and all that the American Cancer Society does are running parallel tracks to help the same group of people."

He anticipated that patients would be "very touched and moved" by the valentine gesture.

"I think it will help reinforce with them the understanding that they're not alone," Driebe said. "I believe they're going to take to heart and be encouraged by knowing that even though they're strangers, that others are thinking about them means a lot."

Students from the , as well as Arcadia, Temple City and Arroyo high schools contributed valentines and attended the presentation ceremony.

"Cancer is more than just a physical disease, the worst part is not knowing what's going to happen, feeling like you're alone and no one can help you," said Aaron Li, a 10th grader at Arcadia and hospital volunteer. Clad in a Relay for Life t-shirt, Li represented his peers at the presentation ceremony in the medical facility's main lobby.

He noted the positive impact of the valentine love note campaign on patients' state of mind and the need for hospital volunteers who speak Chinese to interact with patients who often experience a language barrier with hospital staff.

"When you have an event like this, when so many people are writing to you, you know you're not alone, that people are helping," Li said. "When I spoke to them [in Chinese], they were so happy ... and inspired."

San Marino educators were also in attendance.

Jennifer Chien from the Chinese School of San Marino said "students wrote things that encouraged [patients] to get well soon, to be brave and wished them good fortune." Most of her students wrote messages in English and Chinese, said Chien.

"It's a great opportunity for our students to learn about empathy and the suffering that other people are going through with regard to cancer," said Jose Caire, Activities Director at San Marino High School. He estimated half of the valentines came from SMHS and said students will establish an ACS service club next fall.

Several students "wrote meaningful notes based on their experience dealing with parents or close family members who've battled cancer," Caire said.

Denise Wadsworth from said the valentine love note experience was encouraging for students as well as cancer patients.

"It was just so empowering to them to do something so small but so large--especially at the middle school where children are usually more self involved--for them to learn to get outside of themselves and see that service work is good," said Wadsworth, whose school made an estimated 200 valentines and will participate in the Arcadia Relay for Life in June.

The love notes will be on display during the Relay for Life at Live Oak Park and will be featured during a candlelight ceremony.

"We will build the biggest bonfire the fire department allows, and we will burn all the love notes," said event organizer Chan. "It signifies the phoenix's flight from ashes to the horizon and is reborn again, like we celebrate a birthday. That is the message we want to send to all cancer patients, to have hope that they can overcome the disease."

Chan expects up to 50 Relay for Life teams and said a key goal is to increase the number of bilingual hospital volunteers for Chinese cancer patients. Valentines will continue to be collected until the event's candlelit finale April 17.

Information for those interested in participating is available on the Southern California Chinese Relay group's website.