Giving blood saves lives. An avid donor since the ‘60s, Gary Fuston knew this. But he never expected giving blood to save his own life.

Then came the day in September 1997 when Community Blood Center wouldn’t take his blood. His hemoglobin count was too low, they said — despite the fact that a complete physical just a few months earlier hadn’t revealed any health problems.

Figuring his low hemoglobin count was nothing more than a fluke, Gary went on with his life as usual until, two months later, the center again couldn’t take his blood.

That was the day before Thanksgiving, he remembers, and it was right in the heart of Christmas season that a doctor’s appointment and subsequent trip to the hospital revealed he had colon cancer.

“I turned completely white,” Gary’s wife, Cheryl, says of her reaction to receiving the news. Gary was only 51, which might have bolstered her hope for his chance of survival — if her mother hadn’t died of colon cancer at 46.

The Fustons, who live in Easton, Mo., aren’t alone in having been affected by cancer in a number of ways. This will be evident Friday and Saturday, when hundreds of people gather at Word of Life Church, 3902 N. Riverside Road, for the Andrew/Buchanan County Relay For Life. The annual event contributes money to the American Cancer Society through the fundraising efforts of teams that, by passing the responsibility from one team member to another, will walk for 12 hours straight in honor of cancer victims and survivors.

This year’s event will take place from 6 p.m. June 13 to 6 a.m. June 14, says volunteer chairwoman Vicki Ball, and will include a variety of food vendors and activities — such as live and silent auctions and a baby contest — as well as a reception and walk for cancer survivors. About 600 people are registered to participate in the relay, but anyone can come out for the other activities — which could bring the attendance the evening of the event to more than a thousand.

Another highlight of the night is the luminary ceremony in which votive candles sold for $10 each are lit either in honor or in memory of people who have had cancer. Each year since the discovery of her husband’s cancer, Cheryl has purchased three candles: one in memory of her mother, one in memory of an aunt and one in honor of Gary — who, more than a decade after his unexpected diagnosis, is cancer-free.

Really, though, he never doubted he would survive.

“His first words to me after his diagnosis were, ‘With faith in God and our family and friends, we will get through this,’” Cheryl says. “And we did.”

Gary’s cancerous polyp had been caught early enough that his treatment required surgery, but no chemotherapy. Just two months after his surgery, he went back to his job as a purchasing agent at Johnson Controls in St. Joseph — but life wasn’t exactly like it had been before.

Now, both Gary and Cheryl are meticulous about being screened regularly for colon cancer, as are their 38-year-old daughter and 34-year-old son.

They also began participating annually in Relay For Life, the past three years as part of the “Christians against cancer” team from Community Christian Church. The team raised more than $7,000 last year and has been this relay’s top fundraising team for the past three years.

All the money the event raises — either through its participants or through its auctions and other events and vendors — goes toward American Cancer Society efforts such as cancer research and free programs and services for cancer patients. Last year alone, relays nationwide raised $405 million.

The Fustons plan to contribute each year for as long as they can. And not surprisingly, as soon as he met the criteria of having been cancer-free for five years, Gary also resumed his contribution as a blood donor.

Well, sort of.

“I’ve moved on up to platelets,” he says — a kind of donation that takes a couple of hours each session.

But to him, the time is well worth it if it saves lives. And so is the sleepless night he and Cheryl will soon put in at Relay For Life.

“It’s a good cause to work for,” Cheryl says. “We have grandchildren, and we hope someday, there’s a cure.”

HELP OUT

To learn more about attending or participating in the Andrew/Buchanan County Relay For Life, call Vicki Ball at (816) 390-4924.

Lifestyles reporter Erin Wisdom can be reached at ewisdom@npgco.com.