Working out at the gym in her cancer-awareness game shirt, senior Brooke Thousand is greeted by a woman with tears in her eyes, choking on her words, she says “thank you.”

The woman hits where both of her breasts used to be and says, “I’ve been cancer free for seven years and I want to thank you for supporting everyone fighting breast cancer” and then hugs Thousand.

“When the woman came up to me with tears in her eyes and said thank you, I had never felt so proud to be wearing that shirt,” Thousand said. “I was honored knowing that me playing in a game had such a strong effect on a cancer survivor.”

To Thousand, it’s just a shirt from a cancer-awareness soccer game. To the woman at the gym, who survived breast cancer, it’s a sign of hope.

World Cancer Day is Feb. 4, according to the American Cancer Society. Through walks, sporting events and other fundraisers, students can be involved in cancer awareness.

“I’ve always done Race for the Cure in honor of a family member and it’s been a great experience for me,” senior Justin Keith said. “It’s a lot of fun, but it’s also a good cause, helping out all the people affected by cancer.”

Race for the Cure is in Detroit on June 7, while Relay for Life is at Riverbends Park in Shelby Township on May 17. Interested participants can find out more information at relayforlife.org and raceforthecure.org.

“Relay for Life’s always my favorite to participate in, because of all the activities it has,” junior Michael Kramer said. “The candle lighting they do is really moving.”

The walks and runs donate money raised to cancer research, patient support, detection, treatment and prevention information and education.

Finding their own way to donate, several teams at school hosted cancer awareness fundraisers. Varsity Hockey, Varsity Football and both men’s and women’s Varsity Basketball all participated in cancer awareness games.

“It was really cool playing in a game where the money was being donated to a local middle schooler with cancer,” junior Varsity Hockey center Jack Tobiczyk said. “The game was about more than just our rivalry with Romeo, it was for a cause.”

Whether it’s helping out a local middle schooler, or seeing the appreciation from a stranger at the gym, supporting cancer awareness has become a community wide event.

“Knowing that playing in a game can have such a strong effect on some people is awesome,” Thousand said. “It’s great seeing the results of cancer awareness raising.”