Springfield, Ohio — An entry on the Wittenberg University men's and women's swimming and diving team blog puts it plainly, "It is nearly impossible to find anyone whole life has not been touched by cancer." With that in mind, team members tackled the illness the best way they know how, joining hundreds of other college, high school and club teams across the country to raise awareness and funds for cancer research as part of the sixth annual Hour of Power Relay.

Wittenberg participated in the event, which honors those who are fighting or have succumbed to cancer, for a fifth straight year on Tuesday, Nov. 8, in the HPER Center Natatorium. The Tiger teams' involvement in the Hour of Power Relay fits with the university's emphasis on community service through its new Tiger GamePlan initiative.

The national program was started in 2005 at Carleton College, after Ted Mullin, a member of the men's swimming and diving team, died of a rare soft-tissue cancer called sarcoma. The event has grown to include more than 7,000 athletes in 2011, all of whom raised money for the Ted Mullin Fund for Pediatric Sarcoma Research at the University of Chicago.

Over the first five years of the Hour of Power Relay, more than $265,000 has been raised. In addition to raising money and awareness about sarcoma, a rare type of soft-tissue cancer that disproportionately affects adolescents and young adults, the event aims to promote team spirit.

Wittenberg's Hour of Power, organized in 2011 by Ward McNulty, class of 2012 from Glencoe, Ill., and Sinjin McNicholl, class of 2012 from Indianapolis, Ind., was an hour-long sprint relay in which team members swam 50-yard lengths of each different stroke. The team was divided into six lanes of eight to nine team members each, mixing the men's and women's teams together and including the members who compete only as divers during meets.

Prior to diving into the pool, team members huddled to reflect upon their experience, with several mentioning personal connections to cancer, including family losses and survivor stories as well.

"This year's event was a lot of fun, and I think that participating in the Hour of Power each year is meaningful for our team members," said Head Coach Natalie Koukis. "It is a great team-building and training opportunity that provides all of us with a much-needed sense of perspective."

For more information, visit Carleton's website. To make a contribution to Wittenberg's Hour of Power fundraiser, contact Koukis at (937) 327-6446 or via e-mail.