King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg is one of several Highline High School graduates, who will return to their alma mater on June 7, to participate in the third annual Relay For Life of Highline. The 18-hour event at Highline Memorial Stadium is part of the international effort to benefit the American Cancer Society.

Satterberg and his rock band, The Approximations, will perform a free concert of favorite dance music from the 1960s '70s and '80s in the stadium during the relay, which is open to the public. Donations for the American Cancer Society will be collected at the concert, which beings at 7 p.m.

The relay will feature entertainment all day, beginning with an opening ceremony at 3 p.m., June 7,

King County Councilmember Dow Constantine, a long-time supporter, will return as the special guest speaker to launch the fund-raising weekend. His colleague, King County Council Chair Julia Patterson (D-SeaTac) will bring a team to the relay and walk around the track to collect donations.

Several other Highline graduates will be among the hundreds of volunteers representing nearly 30 fund-raising teams who will take turns walking around the track continuously for 18 hours.

Satterberg, a resident of Normandy Park, will be joined by fellow Highline High alumni and long-time musical collaborators Rusty Fallis of Olympia, Tom Pratt of Bellevue, Fred Staples of Spanaway and John Rankin of Normandy Park. Also joining the band on covers of tunes from The Beatles, Elvis Presley and Stevie Wonder, among others, are Linda Norman of Normandy Park, Bill Mattocks of Bothell and Michael and Michelle Hepburn of Seattle.

Satterberg, Fallis, Pratt and Staples started playing rock-and-roll together back in the mid-'70s in high school.

All four are members of the Highline High Class of 1978, and they are intrigued about returning to the school 30 years after graduation to play a rock concert in the stadium where Satterberg and Staples once played high school football.

"We would have been expelled by the principal had we tried this back then," said Satterberg, the band's bassist.

Playing the music of their youth is a good way to stay young, he added. He and the band members also were interested in the mission of the relay, because "cancer has touched every member of the band in some way," Satterberg said.

His father, Dick Satterberg, a prominent White Center attorney, recently died after battling pancreatic cancer.

Celebrating cancer survivors is an important part of the event. Immediately following the opening ceremony, cancer survivors in the community and their caregivers are encouraged to join in the Survivors' Lap around the track to kick off the relay. Survivors will receive a free T-shirt and will be treated to a complimentary Italian dinner after the initial lap.

Visitors to the event also can enjoy music, face-painting, children's activities, food and beverages.

The inspirational Luminaria Ceremony begins at 10 p.m., Saturday with the lighting of decorated lanterns honoring those who have survived cancer, and memorializing those who have died. Luminaria lanterns will be available by donation, and the names of all those remembered will scroll continuously on a video screen.

The participating teams already have raised more than $13,000 in on-line donations, and thousands more dollars with community fund-raising activities such as yard sales. The contributions of sponsors help to keep costs down so that all funds raised can go directly to the American Cancer Society. Already signed up as sponsors this year are Highline Medical Center, Alliance Data, Robinson News, Burien Chevrolet, Burien Toyota, Highline Therapy Services, BBC Dodge, Sal's Deli of Burien, Highline Public Schools, Dr. Dennis Hansen, Burien Fred Meyer, El Dorado West, The Olive Garden Restaurant, King County, Normandy Park Senior Living and Northwest Mobile Sound and Lighting.

Through the relay's partnership with Highline Medical Center's Cancer Care Center, a wide variety of information about cancer care, treatment and prevention will be available at the event.

The theme of Relay For Life - "Celebrate. Remember. Fight Back." - sets the tone for a community gathering where everyone can participate in the fight against cancer. In addition to raising funds and awareness, the event is a time to remember those lost to cancer and to celebrate those who have survived.

Most of all, the relay represents the hope that those lost to cancer will never be forgotten, that those who face cancer will be supported, and that one day cancer will be eliminated.

For more information about the Relay for Life of Highline, contact Kelly Cochran at the American Cancer Society, 206-674-4103 or kelly.cochran@cancer.org, or event co-chair Sandi Hart, sandra.hart@alliancedata.com.

It is not too late to sign up a team to participate in the relay. Contribute on line and find more information at www.highlinerelay.org.