MACON, Ga. — Over 100 cars, each with at least one cancer survivor inside, lined up outside of Christ Chapel Macon Church to celebrate surviving the disease on Thursday.
It was all part of a Cancer Survivor Lap Parade held by the American Cancer Society.
“Each car that came through, we asked them, ‘How long have you been a survivor?’ Many of them drove away in tears,” Lauren Rutherford said.
Rutherford is the cancer society’s senior manager of community development. She says the organization usually holds a walking survivor lap, but plans changed due to COVID-19.
“I just thought it would be a neat idea to do a drive-thru survivor lap,” Rutherford said.
Rutherford attends Christ Chapel. She says when she reached out to Pastor John Wood and asked him to hold the event there, he was “thrilled.”
She asked folks on social media to decorate their cars, bring their loved ones, and ride through the church’s parking lot in celebration.
“It was just a way that we could celebrate them and honor them and let them know that we have not forgotten them,” she said.
Carley Neill was diagnosed with triple negative stage three breast cancer in May 2018 when she was 30 weeks pregnant. She says she delivered her second child, a baby boy, at 34 weeks into her pregnancy and started chemo two weeks later.
“I did six rounds of chemo, and then had a bilateral double mastectomy, and then did another six months of oral chemo and 28 rounds of radiation,” Neill said. “So, I am about a year and a half with no evidence of disease.”
Neill attended the parade along with her two children, 4-year-old Emory and 2-year-old Eli. She says attending her first celebratory cancer survivor event was overwhelming.
“Everybody out there just cheering me on. It literally made me start bawling. I didn’t expect to be so emotional, but I couldn’t hold the tears back,” she said. “It was great to just be able to celebrate life.”
Neill says she is grateful to be alive and to have her children be there to support her.
“It was wonderful because they were alongside the journey with me, so having them along there with me to celebrate just kind of made it full circle,” she said.
Julie Bragg is a breast cancer survivor of 26 years. Her two dogs and husband joined her at the parade.
"It was really great to see something so optimistic these days and to carry on with so many things that have been canceled," Bragg said.
Thursday was the anniversary of a major surgery in her journey with cancer.
"Giving people some hope. It was just a cheerful group yesterday," she said.
The fire department came out in support of the event, the sheriff’s office helped with traffic, and Texas Roadhouse donated free 350 meals that the cancer society gave to the cancer survivors.
“Then we made goodie bags, all sorts of giveaways,” Rutherford said. “But it was a way for them to celebrate.”