COAL GROVE - Donations for the Coal Grove Relay for Life are down, but organizers are still pleased with the donations and the turnout.

Brenda Haas, co-chairwoman of the event, said it had raised close to $7,000 Monday morning. Donations were still arriving in the morning, and Haas said she expected more throughout the week. The event at the Dawson-Bryant High School track had raised approximately $25,000 last year. The relay is meant to raise money for and awareness of cancer research through the American Cancer Society.

"It's a definite drop," she said.

To not have the event so close to the Proctorville Relay For Life, which was May 9 and 10, organizers of the Coal Grove relay moved the date from May 16 and 17 to late July. Because the date was close to vacations and the new school year and football season, the event was changed from two days to one. Because of that, 90 degree heat at the track, and local economic downturn, the donations were down, Haas said. Last year, Tipton's Foodland and Bakery had a team at the relay, and now the business is closed, she said. Also, the Lawrence County Fair only recently ended, and many Dawson-Bryant students participate in that as well.

Nevertheless, businesses still supported the relay as well as several individuals who would donate $10-$20.

"That shows our area cares," Haas said. "We had two relays here. Lawrence County has done very well."

Johnna Lunsford, a supervisor at the Lawrence County Schools office, had the team which raised the most money, which Haas estimated was $1,500 to $1,600. Lunsford had a team of 12 to 14 people.

Despite the drop in donations, Haas was still pleased with the relay, which she said is not so much about raising money as it is about raising cancer research awareness. Haas did not have a definite count on how many people had attended, but said a steady stream of people were at the relay throughout the day.

"It's not about money," she said. "We were pleased with the survivor walk. I counted 70 or more, but some made it at the end. They made it all the way around the track, and it was 90 degrees outside."

One cancer survivor of 44 years sat and talked with several other recent survivors and some who have received a recent cancer diagnosis.

"That gives them encouragement and hope that there are strides being made in research so a cure can be found," Haas said.