For years the American Cancer Society has operated successful Relay for Life programs in Perry Hall, Essex and Dundalk but never before have Parkville and Carney had the opportunity to host an event of their own.

That's about to change and the process begins with a community rally meeting at Parkville Rec Center on Thursday night.

"We found that people here weren’t going elsewhere to be involved in Relay," said Katie Weber, a spokeswoman for the American Cancer Society. "Sometimes it’s best to bring it to the people."

Weber, who has worked for the American Cancer Society for five years, said she was drawn to Parkville and Carney as a location for a new event.

"This appealed to me as an area of the county that had a very strong sense of community," Weber said. "People had a sense of being from here — you have your amazing rec center, you’ve got every chain store you could want and strong, independent, locally-owned small businesses community."

"There’s also a strong volunteer interest here which is also very important," Weber said.

Relay for Life is an overnight team fundraising event for the American Cancer Society. Typically, groups of between 8 and 15 register to walk a designated track for 24 hours.

"There’s no number of laps you have to walk, or number of miles that your team has to complete," Weber said. "It’s a really fun team event; we create on-site fundraisers — people selling Rice Krispies treats; pieing someone in the face is always popular if you can get a community leader."

Weber explained that Relay events also typically have entertainment on stage to engage people as they’re walking the track.

"Zumba is always popular at odd hours ... 3:30, 4 a.m.," Weber said. "The idea is to give people a level of entertainment throughout the night."

Aside from the fundrasier itself, Weber said that Relay for Life is really about three things: celebrating those who have survived a bout with cancer, remembering the loved ones lost to the disease and giving people a reason to fight back.

"Research and every little step that individuals take — whether it’s reminding your mom to get her mammogram, or your spouse to schedule a colonoscopy, whether it’s deciding for yourself to take those steps for a healthier lifestyle; everything helps," Weber said. "We've been doing this for 25 years and we're not going to stop until we find a cure for this disease."

The community rally, which begins at 7 p.m. on Thursday will be an opportunity for people to learn about relay for life, register for the event and even volunteer.

Parkville-Carney's Relay for Life is tentatively scheduled for mid-June, but as yet Weber hasn't found a home for the event.

That means there are more than three months to get involved if you want. Even if you can't make the Thursday night meeting, Weber said she'd be happy to hear from anyone who wants to discuss the event — she can be reached by email at katie.weber@cancer.org.