NATCHEZ — Remembrance. Perseverance. Empowerment.

Those are a few words that could describe the atmosphere Friday night at the Concordia Recreation District No. 3 complex at the 2018 Miss-Lou Relay for Life.

There, stories of strong-willed survivors pervaded the grounds, as they and their caregivers strutted around the track to songs including “I Will Survive” and “We will Rock You.”

The cancer survivors and caregivers, as well as the more than 30 teams donning outfits from pirate attire, to Jedi robes and light sabers with a play on May the 4th be with you, to a Black Panther superhero costume, all walked jubilantly for the same cause: finding a cure for cancer.

Everyone there had a purpose for being at the relay. For Ramee Thompson, a longtime Relay for Life supporter and now a 4-year member of the fundraiser’s board, that purpose is her two sons, Tyler and Richard.

She had both of their faces pinned to her shirt with the words “I miss you” lining the edges.

“They’re why I relay,” Thompson said with a smile.

Tyler, diagnosed at age 18, died from leukemia in 2008 just after his 21st birthday. Ramee Thompson remembered how Richard tried to console his mother after Tyler’s passing. Richard, his mother said, did all he could to help.

“(Richard) actually donated stem cells to his brother,” Thompson said.

Just weeks after Tyler’s passing, Richard was then diagnosed with thyroid cancer. He would go on to survive the disease, but was tragically killed in a car accident in 2011 just a few weeks after beating his disease.

Each son had an April birthday, and now, Ramee Thompson said she chooses to celebrate this time of year in their honor.

“I celebrate their birthdays by doing Relay for Life,” she said.

Many others at the event also carried with them the spirit of a lost loved one into the relay.

One of those people was Vidalia Mayor Buz Craft, who during his welcome gave a touching tribute to former Vidalia Clerk Vicki Byrnes, who lost her battle with cancer in February.

“She was a trooper,” Craft said. “She was a good soldier. She was a lovely individual who loved her job, loved her town, loved her family. There’s no way we can honor her as much as she deserves, the same way those who walk this lap twice.

“Y’all are heroes to me, and I’m sure you’re heroes to the other people walking here, because nobody knows the pain you’ve dealt with. The pain you’ve felt.”

Craft went on to say that Byrnes would come to work with broken bones and immense pain from her chemotherapy, because she loved her work.

“She will always be a hero to me, and every time I walk in that door, I wish I could walk around and see that pretty smile.”

Following Craft, Natchez Mayor Darryl Grennell commended everyone in the community who involved themselves in Relay for Life.

“To make it No. 1 in the country per capita — that’s something to brag about when it comes to the Miss-Lou area,” Grennell said.

Getting to that point took a combined effort from many people who played their part, such as prostate cancer survivor Keith Darnell and his daughter, Denise Davis, a Miss-Lou Relay for Life board member.

Darnell calls himself, “one of the lucky ones,” as he was able to have his cancer removed by microscopic robotic surgery, avoided needing chemotherapy and went back to work after missing just half a month of work.

But although he is modest in the telling of his survival story, Darnell said he felt charged with using his success to help encourage others. To this day, he maintains that charge.

“I’ll talk to anybody at any time,” Darnell said. “My door’s always open.”

That compassion exemplifies why both he and Davis relish this time of year.

“It’s my favorite day of the year,” Davis said. “Most people love Christmas, Thanksgiving, but Relay (for Life) is our favorite.”

And with all the emotion, bonding and generosity that Friday’s event brought with it, Davis said she stays focused on one day — hopefully soon — attaining the ultimate goal.

“Most cancer patients live one day at a time; one hour at a time sometimes,” she said. “That’s why we’re here: to relay and to raise money, and hopefully this is the year a cure for cancer is found.”