The Edina Track and Field Team is taking on cancer. The recent Edina Invitational meet on May 2nd brought in donations to The Randy Shaver Cancer Research and Community Fund, a charity started by Kare 11 newscaster and cancer survivor Randy Shaver.

“We asked other teams to bring in money to donate,” said Edina junior and distance runner Logan Ramlet. “We had not done this before and it brought more purpose to the meet. We’re always looking for ways to improve the experience of the meets.”

“We’re supporting a good cause and getting more students involved from Edina and other schools. We made it a [fundraising] competition between schools. It feels great just knowing that what we did helped people,” said Abdi Sahal, another junior who competes in jumping events and hurdles.

The meet brought in almost $1,000 in donations. “I think for our first year trying this fundraiser I didn’t know what to expect… at the very least, to bring awareness of the issue and how it impacts all of us,” said Edina teacher and coach David Boone. “To raise $1,000, I’m happy with that.”

This issue hits home for Boone. “My dad passed away from bladder cancer in the year 2000, at the age of fifty-five… prior to that my grandfather… passed away from lung cancer in the late 70’s,” said Boone. “I’ve even had two skin cancer surgeries.”

One of the services that the fund goes towards is providing transportation to treatments for cancer patients, something that Boone’s father needed near the end of his life. It also goes towards cancer research and prevention.

Cancer research aside, the meet itself was a success. “I’ve gotten a lot of good feedback from other coaches from other teams,” said Boone. In terms of athletic performance, both boys and girls finished third out of six teams competing, with Stillwater coming in first overall.