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‘It’s their celebration’

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Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Wilkerson.

Light the Night Walk 

Thursday, Oct. 2

5:30 p.m. 

Railroad Park 

Pets are now allowed to Light the Night this year. A dog station will provide water and treats.

Ten years ago, Greystone resident Rosilyn Houston’s 23-month-old son, Christian, was diagnosed with leukemia.

While Christian was receiving the chemotherapy treatments to save his life, Houston found she didn’t know much about the disease — until she found the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. 

One month after her son’s diagnosis, she walked the Light the Night walk for her son. Now, Christian is 11 years old, and this year marks Houston’s 10th anniversary with LLS and Light the Night. This year, she will also serve as the chairperson for Light the Night. 

“It’s very personal to me. For me being the chairperson is almost like a testimony for me that the work that they are doing as a society is absolutely making a difference,” Houston said. “For me to be able to come out of the hospital with a well child, to help tell the story, I think is unique for the organization as a whole. It’s very, very special to me to be the one to share this 10 years since his diagnosis.”

On the night of the walk, 3,000 red, white and gold lanterns will light up the night sky at Railroad Park.

Individuals will hold a color symbolizing their reason for walking. Red represents supporters, white is for survivors or current patients, and gold is held in memory of someone who passed. 

“That’s the point to get them together with people who have gone through the same, or very similar, experiences,” said campaign director Elizabeth Ragland. “They are able to meet each other and develop bonds and relationships.” 

Ragland said even though there are far too many gold lanterns, the camaraderie found in those lanterns is good because it makes people feel like someone else has gone through losing a loved one as well.  

This national walk, held in both the United States and Canada, has become more than a walk to end cancer for the people touched by cancer, Ragland said. Now it is their celebration. 

“[If] they’re still battling — to see other people who have survived — it keeps them going, and it’s a celebration for those who have gone through the battle and are surviving,” Ragland said. “As I was corrected it’s ‘I’m not a survivor, I’m surviving.’ Also [it’s] to celebrate those who have passed.”

Houston’s son isn’t the only tie she has to the society. When she was 12, she lost her 19-year-old brother to Hodgkin’s disease. Prior to her work with LLS, she hadn’t realized her brother’s disease was connected to her son’s. 

Houston said she is very thankful for providing her with the emotional support when she needed it, and she is always there for others struggling with the same thing she went through. 

“Once we got out of the hospital and we experienced the miracle of his life, I committed myself to raising awareness and also to supporting this organization so they can help do whatever they can so that more people can live,” Houston said. 

She remembers looking out the window on the 10th floor of the hospital in the cancer ward, as people continued living their lives thinking, “Why isn’t everything stopped?” Seeing the support and the community joining hands to make a difference, Houston said is a beautiful thing to witness and illustrates the importance of Light the Night. 

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