Men's Lacrosse
Serious Support
By Erika Street / Special to The Auburn Citizen
Tuesday, May 30, 2006 11:33 AM EDT
Direct Link: http://www.auburnpub.com/articles/2006/05/30/news/lake_life/feat01.txt
Skin cancer is currently the most common form of cancer in
the United States. In fact, according to the American Cancer
Society, it accounts for nearly half of all cancers in America.
Unfortunately, despite skin cancer's prevalence, few people are
aware of its seriousness: according to the Center for Disease
Control, recent research indicates that 74 percent of young adults
have no knowledge of malignant melanoma.
This was certainly true of MacKenzie Crawford of Auburn.
"My father, Stephen Crawford, passed away from skin cancer in
December," she said. "Before he was diagnosed with it, I thought
skin cancer was just something like a mole that you got removed. I
didn't know how serious it was until it happened to him."
Soon after the death of her father, Crawford found out that her
friend, Travis Tarr, also had melanoma.
"I had a mole on my shoulder," Tarr explained. "I'd had it for
years, and I just decided to get it taken off. I didn't expect
anything of it, but once they started to do tests on it, they
discovered that I had melanoma."
Like Crawford, Tarr knew very little about skin cancer before
his diagnosis. "To tell the truth, when the doctor called and said
I had melanoma, I wasn't even sure what it was," he said. "And come
to find out, it was a type of skin cancer. I was really scared at
first."
Fortunately, Tarr was able to turn to Crawford for support.
"I've known MacKenzie all through middle school and high school,"
he said, "So I talked to her and she was really supportive. She
said it was great that I caught it now before it got any worse. It
had spread down into my shoulder and my armpit, but the doctors
went in and found the spots where it was and took it all out."
Because they felt so blindsided by their experiences with skin
cancer, Tarr and Crawford decided to make an effort to educate
their community.
"We talked about it and thought it was a serious thing that
people needed to know about," Crawford said.
The result of their efforts is SPF 2006, a one-mile walk/run in
support of skin cancer awareness that will be held at the Owasco
Fire Department on Sunday. After the run, participants will enjoy a
cookout, music and a raffle, and will learn important information
about skin cancer prevention.
"It's about education and also it is to help raise money for the
American Cancer Society," Crawford said. "The money is going to go
towards research on dermatology and skin cancer."
Because Crawford and Tarr are both Le Moyne College students with
busy schedules, organizing the benefit required a lot of
determination. "Since a lot of the organizing was done during
finals week, it was really hard, especially for Travis because he
also had lacrosse practice," Crawford added.
According to Tarr, Crawford made a huge effort to put the benefit
together.
"She's done a great job juggling schoolwork and getting this walk
set up," he said. "MacKenzie has been working so hard these past
months, and it's unbelievable what she's done. She deserves all the
credit."
"It's been hard," Crawford agreed, "but a lot of people around
Auburn have been great about helping out. Travis and I are both
originally from Auburn, and everyone there has been great and just
said okay, let me see what I can do."
In fact, Crawford and Tarr have been overwhelmed by the support
their community has shown them: more than 25 area sponsors have
donated money, services or time. Dinosaur BBQ is even helping with
food. "Community Computer Service helped out with a big donation to
the American Cancer Society," Crawford said, "and I've been getting
in touch with coaches because I've been trying to get a lot of the
high school athletics involved."
Tarr, who is a standout on the Le Moyne lacrosse team, has also
received a lot of support from his fellow athletes. "All the
T-shirt sales from the national lacrosse championship, we always
donate them to a charity," he said. "And the first thing the team
said this year was, ‘Let's donate to Travis and MacKenzie's
cause.' So all the T-shirt sales and everything we make from going
to the national championships will be donated to the American
Cancer Society."
A number of Tarr's teammates are also planning to join the
walk/run. "A bunch of the guys will be coming to Auburn," Tarr
said. "They were there when I was going through the surgery. They
were all really supportive, especially my coach. Anything I ever
needed, he was there for me. So it's just great to see how your
friends are there for you in a time of need."
Although Tarr and Crawford hope that everyone attending the walk
learns about skin cancer, they especially want to educate their
peers.
"I want to target young people more," Crawford said. "A lot of the
athletes playing sports outside in the sun don't realize that
they're getting burned. We want them to be careful about it. Also,
in this day and age, tanning is the new thing. We're trying to get
across that if you're going to do it, which most girls are, just be
careful about it. Go get checked up, and don't fry yourself."
Tarr agreed. "It's a simple thing: if you go out in the sun, just
put sunscreen on," he said. "And if you have any moles that are
growing or kind of dark, just get them checked out every once in
awhile."
According to The Skin Cancer Foundation, a mole is considered
suspicious if it is asymmetrical (i.e. the two sides of the mole do
not match), has uneven borders, is over six millimeters in
diameter, or has changed in size, shape, color or elevation.
Tarr stressed the importance of having such moles checked out. "If
you catch melanoma early, the doctors can clear it up like they did
in my case," he said. "But if you're not aware of it, like a lot of
people aren't, then it could be deadly. That was the scariest part
for me - I didn't know how serious it could have been."
If you would like to participate in SPF 2006, you can pick up
information at The Printery in Auburn.
"There are sponsor forms down at the Printery, and there are
tickets for sale there, too," Crawford said. "The tickets are if
you don't want to do the run/walk, you can just come and support
it, pick up some information, have food and have a good time."
Crawford and Tarr hope that their skin protection fundraiser will
become a new tradition in Auburn.
"It being the first year, we really want to get the word out
there," Tarr said. "Because we hope that it will grow in coming
years. We'd like to do it every year - it's a great way to kick off
the summer and just get the word out there that this is a serious
issue."
