Ballard raises more than $2,800 for cancer fundraiser

As a reward for raising thousands of dollars for cancer research, students at Ballard Elementary School had the opportunity to toss water balloons at teachers and administrative staff Monday at the Niles school.

Laura Dierlam, a second grade teacher at Ballard, said the students raised just more than $2,800 in the school’s annual Relay for Life event May 2.

On that day, students walked around the dirt track behind the school in shifts, mimicking the Relay for Life events that take place throughout the country.

Money collected by the students goes to the Niles-Buchanan Relay for Life, which supports the American Cancer Society in its effort to find a cure for cancer.

Students who raised the most money in each grade level were given the chance to throw water balloons.

The school has offered similar incentives in the past.

Last year the students raised $3,000.