The EIU Colleges Against Cancer service group will be presenting the 2016 Relay for Life Kickball Tournament in order to fundraise for the American Cancer Society 6 p.m. Friday in the Student Recreational Center.

The event will be introduced with an opening ceremony featuring an Eastern student who is a cancer survivor.

In addition to the kickball tournament, there will be T-Shirt giveaways, bags, Luminaire decorating, a photo booth and a hair stylist who will be doing haircuts, putting in extensions and cutting hair of those who wish to donate hair to create free wigs for cancer patients by the American Cancer Society.

Bailey Wilson, secretary of Colleges Against Cancer, said this year their service group has switched it up for their Relay for Life event.

“This has been our first event of the semester as it is our main event and fundraiser for each year. Last semester we were involved with the volleyball team and had a coaches versus cancer game where we sold T-Shirts,” Wilson said. “In the future we hope to grow and be more successful in more events throughout the year.”

Each team competing in the kickball tournament will have 6 to 12 members, and as each team registers online they can set a donation goal for their group.

The service group will be collecting donations for the American Cancer Society through participants’ registration fees along with any other donations teams give to the group.

According to the American Cancer Society’s website, there are 20 teams and 597 participants who have raised almost $10,000 in donations.

Their website also states the top participants including Jake Sopko, communication studies major, who donated $345, Kendall Carstens, pre-nursing major, who donated $285 and Kellyn Roos, communication disorders and sciences major, who donated $275.

Greek organizations have also donated money including Alpha Gamma Delta who donated $2,675, Alpha Phi who donated $1,045 and Delta Delta Delta who donated $940.

“This event is great for the students to come get involved in something so simple and so fun, while also getting the chance to participate in something that is much bigger than them,” Wilson said. “Bringing cancer awareness to students is the main goal of this and having fun while doing it is all the better.”

Wilson said the members of Colleges Against Cancer will be wearing red event T-Shirts and will be spreading cancer awareness through their information booth.

“I started with this group my freshman year, last year, and noticed early that these changes needed to be made judging by years in the past,” Wilson said. “I have been involved with Relay for Life since the age of 10 so it was only right that I when I came to college I got involved right away in a different way than I have before.”

Abbey Whittington can be reached at 581-2812 or anwhittington@eiu.edu