American Cancer Society Relay For Life Training Podcast

This episode features a conversation from the Global Relay Talk video podcast, hosted by Global Relay For Life volunteers Steve Bell from the U.S. and Henrik Michaelson from Denmark.They’re joined by Becky VanLoon, National Relay Lead in the United States, to reflect on 40 Years of Impact, creative ways communities have celebrated, and the growth of Global Relay For Life around the world.You can listen to all episodes of the Global Relay Talk podcast in the Global Relay For Life Community group on Facebook: facebook.com/groups/grflcommunity

What does it really take to power the mission of the American Cancer Society through Relay For Life? In this energizing recorded training, longtime volunteer Jolene Wegsteen (Relay For Life of Sacramento County) and Anne Dolinski (Director, Centralized Community Fundraising) break down what effective fundraising looks like—at every level.Whether you’re on an Event Leadership Team, a team captain, or a passionate participant, you’ll walk away with proven ideas for goal setting, community engagement, and keeping fundraising fun. Learn how to lead by example, use the ACS Fundraising App, celebrate milestones, and bring your unique skills to life through creative events—from pickleball tournaments and tea parties to virtual luminaria and neighborhood movie nights.Packed with real-world examples and tangible tips, this episode is your go-to resource for making your Relay season impactful—and joyful.🎯 Topics include:Goal setting and monthly benchmarkingEngaging your ELT, captains, and participantsFundraising celebration ideas and incentive recognitionCreative team and event-wide fundraising examplesMaximizing the power of the ACS Fundraising AppShifting the mindset: fundraise before the event📲 Access all tools and resources at acsresources.org.

Want to take your Relay For Life Facebook Group to the next level? This training will help you maximize engagement, grow your community, and use Facebook Groups to promote your event, recruit participants, and share the mission of the American Cancer Society. Whether you're new to managing a group or looking for fresh ideas, this session covers best practices, creative strategies, and insider tips to make your Facebook Group a thriving hub for your Relay For Life event.🔽 Jump to key sections: 🔽⏳ 00:00:03 - Welcome & Introductions⏳ 00:00:40 - Why Facebook Groups Matter⏳ 00:06:52 - Setting Up & Managing Your Group⏳ 00:14:00 - Public vs. Private Groups⏳ 00:19:06 - How to Boost Engagement⏳ 00:29:46 - Using Facebook Events & Fundraisers⏳ 00:42:34 - Growing Your Group⏳ 00:50:07 - Measuring Success⏳ 00:55:01 - Final Thoughts & Q&A

Join us for this recorded training with Gracelyn Thrash and Cheryl Eddy, Staff Partners for the Relay For Life of Gwinnett County, GA, as they share strategies for maximizing fundraising on event day. “Day of” fundraising is not just an opportunity—it’s an expectation we should set with our teams to help boost their impact and enhance the Relay experience.🔹 In this session, you’ll learn:✅ How to communicate the expectation of “day of” fundraising with teams✅ Creative ideas and best practices to drive donations at the event✅ How to leverage the Relay For Life Fundraising App and digital payment options for seamless givingWe hope these ideas inspire you to enhance your event’s fundraising efforts!

Join us for an insightful session on building and sustaining impactful sponsorships for your Relay For Life event. Learn from volunteer experts as they share strategies, experiences, and successes to attract meaningful partnerships. Strengthen your event while advancing the mission to end cancer as we know it for everyone!

Join Nationwide Relay Leadership Team co-lead Suzy Lawrence for an end-of-year Relay For Life celebration call! We’ll be highlighting Relay events that have achieved great success in 2024, and we want to hear from you too! Share your 2024 Relay event highlights, stories, and successes as we come together to celebrate the incredible impact we’ve made this year in our journey to end cancer as we know it, for everyone. Don’t miss this chance to connect, reflect, and celebrate!

Join Nationwide Relay Leadership Team Co-Lead Becky VanLoon and special guests for an engaging virtual training session that covered everything you needed to know about the 2025 Relay First Lap and provided tools to help celebrate 40 years of impact in the 2025 Relay For Life season. Attendees were among the first to see the 2025 Relay For Life t-shirt design and learned about the new Grand Club and All-Star incentives. It was a unique opportunity to connect, get inspired, and gear up for a memorable year of Relay!

Are you looking to boost school involvement in your community’s Relay For Life event? Don’t miss this opportunity to connect with staff and volunteers from the National College & Youth Engagement Team! In this session, you’ll discover best practices and insights about the Schools vs. Cancer program. With topics ranging from registration details to innovative fundraising ideas, this training will equip you with the tools and knowledge to effectively engage schools in your area. Whether you’re a seasoned volunteer or new to Relay For Life, join us to make a meaningful impact!

Recorded September 2024 - Join our recognition leads from the NCFLT as they share recognition best practices at the local level and how to nominate your Relayers, teams, or event for the Spirit of Relay Awards.

Join Gina for an overview of Bark For Life. Paired with the Bark For Life training published in August 2024.

Recorded August 2024 – Join Nick, Suzy, Katie & Jessica P to hear more about Bark For Life and how you can bring a Bark For Life to your community.  

Recorded April 25, 2024 – Your Relay event day is the time for your community to come together to celebrate your local survivors, remember those we’ve lost, and make an impact in the fight against cancer.  Creating a great experience for your participants will keep them coming back year after year.

Recorded April 18, 2024 – Fundraising isn’t all we do, but all we do depends on fundraising! Relay volunteers will be sharing their strategies and best practices that help them raise the most to support our mission.

Recorded April 2024 – The companies and businesses in our communities make great partners. From employee giving campaigns to securing corporate dollars, corporate partners can have a big impact on your Relay. This prerecorded session will have long time volunteers sharing their best practices and insights on how to work with the business side of your community.

Recorded February 29, 2024 – Ceremonies are a huge part of your event and leave an impression on your participants.  Join our volunteers and a Voices of Hope speakers as they share best practices and tips from creating impactful ceremonies.

Recorded February 15, 2024 – Great partnerships make Relay more successful and bring in more dollars to help end cancer as we know it, for everyone. Listen in to volunteers and their staff partners share their tips, tricks, and ideas for building that relationship.

Meetings need to be effective and meaningful to keep your ELT engaged and moving forward! Join us for a prerecorded session where Relay leaders share their thoughts and wisdom on how they keep Relay meetings fresh and on point.

Are you part of an Event Leadership Team (ELT) that is new to Relay or restarting an event in your community? Join our Relay experts for this live session as we go back to the basics of what makes a Relay the unique experience we love, share your own ideas, and network with other Relayers from across the country.

It's our final post for this year's nomination-based Relay For Life Awards! Suzy's back for one last interview - this time with the Spirit of Relay - Event nationwide winner: Relay For Life of Bradley County, Tennessee. #RelayAwards #RelayForLifeAwards #RelayForLife

Relay Awards Week continues with the Power of Hope award, honoring Relay events that go above and beyond to support and honor cancer survivors in their community. Join Suzy as she interview's this year's national winner - the Relay For Life of Southern Nevada! #RelayAwards #RelayForLifeAwards #RelayForLife

Relay Awards Week continues with the Pat Flynn Spirit of Relay - Team award. Join Suzy as she breaks the news and talks with this year's winner - Sisters from the Heart from the Relay For Life of Southern Nevada! ⁠#RelayAwards⁠ ⁠#RelayForLifeAwards⁠ ⁠#RelayForLife⁠

Relay Awards Week is here! Starting things off with our first nationwide award, the Spirit of Relay - Individual. This nationwide award goes to Connie Hodge from the Relay For Life of Harrisonburg/Rockingham, Virginia! Join nationwide RFL lead Suzy Lawrence for an interview with some of the Relayers who knew Connie well. #RelayAwards #RelayForLifeAwards #RelayForLife

Recorded January 2024 – Hosted by your National Relay Leadership Team, the two part ELT Training Camp focuses on best practices for volunteer / staff partnerships, recruitment, building relationships in your community, and running a productive meeting. We also share great information on the new ACS branding and how Relay is making an impact on our mission to end cancer as we know it, for everyone.

Recorded January 2024 – Hosted by your National Relay Leadership Team, the two part ELT Training Camp focuses on best practices for volunteer / staff partnerships, recruitment, building relationships in your community, and running a productive meeting.  We also share great information on the new ACS branding and how Relay is making an impact on our mission to end cancer as we know it, for everyone.

Hear from volunteer Chris Doe and guest volunteers from across the country as they share about their experiences being on the Relay For Life Event Leadership Team (ELT).

Recorded August 17, 2023 – Where does the money go?  How do donations really make a difference?  For ACS 101, we had two of our ACS funded researchers and staff who work directly to support patients come and share just exactly how your fundraising efforts are making a difference for people facing cancer every day.

Recorded May 18, 2023 – The more the merrier when it comes to people at Relay! How are you spreading the word about your event to get people to join the fight? Hear from our ACS marketing expert and our volunteers as they share the online and offline ways we market Relay in our communities.