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Covenant Shores Team Surprises Dragon Boat Competitors
MERCER ISLAND, WA (September 26, 2005) - The staff of the Covenant Shores
retirement community surprised onlookers during a community wide charity
event earlier this month by placing a strong third in a "dragon boat" race.
The previously unknown team, Covenant Chikara, comprised of 20 employees
and three community residents, competed in the Corporate Division of the
Second Annual International Cancer Cup Dragon Boat Festival at Newcastle
Beach Park in Bellevue, Washington, on September 4.
The novices competed in boats with dragon heads at the bow and tails at
the stern. Spectators and other competitors paid little attention to the
team until it won the first heat and posted a third-best overall time of
2:38 among the 12 teams competing.
The unexpected competition brought crowds to the observation dock.
During the second heat, the Covenant Chikara team proved its win wasn't
beginner's luck - the team improved its time by three seconds to 2:35.
With two first-place victories under its belt, Covenant Chikara assured
itself of a medal and the opportunity to race against the traditional
powerhouses - Microsoft and Mulvanny G2 Architecture. The Covenant
Chikara boat raced between its two competitors.
The Covenant team had a rough start against heavy winds but battled
back. By mid-course, the race was neck and neck. With drums beating, the
race caller yelling and crowds screaming, the three boats crossed the
line in a photo finish. When the results were in, Mulvanny retained its
first place seat and Microsoft took second. The novice Covenant Chikara
team went home with third.
The 23 Covenant Chikara team members were elated. They participated in
the race as a means of demonstrating support for cancer survivors and to
celebrate the joy and exuberance of life. They went home having
accomplished that goal and much more.
"Covenant Shores is a big-hearted community that is well-accustomed to
working as a
team," says Anne Arakaki-Lock, campus administrator. "We're thrilled our
team of staff members and residents pulled to victory - the team
represents every aspect of our community."
When it formed just three months before the race, the team chose the
name Chikara because in Japanese it translates to "strength," "force,"
"energy" and "power." After a mere three practice sessions with coaches
from Team Survivor Northwest, Covenant Chikara used sheer determination
to compensate for its lack of experience, the administrator believes.
The International Cancer Cup Dragon Boat Festival is an event organized
by Team Survivor Northwest and presented by the Seattle Sake Dragon Boat
Club and the City of Bellevue. The festival focuses on cancer survivors
in all stages of recovery and the medical staff who assist them. This
year_s teams included survivors, health care professionals and community
supporters from Seattle, Canada, Oregon and Alaska.
In addition to the three winners, Starbucks and Studio 904 competed for
the Corporate Cup, while eight medical support teams competed for the
Specimen Cup. Five survivor teams competed for the Celebrating Life
Cancer Cup.
Team Survivor Northwest provides a broad range of fitness and health
education programs to enable women cancer survivors, in any stage of
treatment or recovery and at any fitness level, to take an active role
in their ongoing physical and emotional healing.
Covenant Shores is a nationally accredited not-for-profit continuing
care retirement community administered by Covenant Retirement
Communities on behalf of the Board of Benevolence of the Evangelical
Covenant Church.
(Editor's note: The accompanying photo shows the second heat of the
International Cancer Cup Dragon Boat Festival on Lake Washington. In
this photo, Covenant Chikara pulls in front of teams from Swedish Cancer
Institute and the Seattle Cancer Treatment and Wellness Center.)
Copyright © 2008 The Evangelical Covenant Church. |
