MACOMB, Ill. -
Nearly one week after the second annual Shaymus Relays and donations
continue to pour in, raising over $11,000 for Shaymus Guinn and his
family.
The Shaymus Relays, a fund raiser for Shaymus Guinn (son of women’s soccer coach Tony Guinn) and the Guinn family is put on by members of the Western Illinois track and field and cross country teams and headed by senior Eric Anerino and junior Michael McGraw. Shaymus continues to battle Ewing’s Sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer. For the second-straight year, the relays brought support and participation from all over campus and the Macomb community.
“When I looked around the Shaymus Relays it was amazing to have the entire athletic department, the teams, administrators and the children of the community in full support,” Anerino said. “It was great that Macomb Little League actually canceled games that day to have full support for a great cause; we really appreciated that. Seeing other individuals giving up their time and showing support means a lot to me.”
One hundred percent of the money raised is donated to the Guinn family and came from the participation in the relays, T-shirt purchases and donations. The event consisted of track and field activities for 1st through 6th graders and a pair of events for students of Western Illinois University. The relay competition had 135 elementary participants and 188 Western Illinois participants. In addition to the participants, hundreds of spectators came to show support.
“It’s really cool to put on an event like this,” McGraw said. “To see families come out together and participate to support Shaymus and his family is really cool and to see this many people care that much. We were able to tweak some things from last year so registration and details went a lot smoother this year, especially with the help of KO (Kathy Orban). We have hopes the Shaymus Relays will continue every year and when the time is right the proceeds will go to another Macomb family in need.”
The Shaymus Relays, a fund raiser for Shaymus Guinn (son of women’s soccer coach Tony Guinn) and the Guinn family is put on by members of the Western Illinois track and field and cross country teams and headed by senior Eric Anerino and junior Michael McGraw. Shaymus continues to battle Ewing’s Sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer. For the second-straight year, the relays brought support and participation from all over campus and the Macomb community.
“When I looked around the Shaymus Relays it was amazing to have the entire athletic department, the teams, administrators and the children of the community in full support,” Anerino said. “It was great that Macomb Little League actually canceled games that day to have full support for a great cause; we really appreciated that. Seeing other individuals giving up their time and showing support means a lot to me.”
One hundred percent of the money raised is donated to the Guinn family and came from the participation in the relays, T-shirt purchases and donations. The event consisted of track and field activities for 1st through 6th graders and a pair of events for students of Western Illinois University. The relay competition had 135 elementary participants and 188 Western Illinois participants. In addition to the participants, hundreds of spectators came to show support.
“It’s really cool to put on an event like this,” McGraw said. “To see families come out together and participate to support Shaymus and his family is really cool and to see this many people care that much. We were able to tweak some things from last year so registration and details went a lot smoother this year, especially with the help of KO (Kathy Orban). We have hopes the Shaymus Relays will continue every year and when the time is right the proceeds will go to another Macomb family in need.”
