Most children who are proficient with the use of their crayons can tell you that mixing red and blue will get you purple.

As it turns out, there couldn’t be a more fitting metaphor for an event coming up next month.

The Suffolk Department of Fire and Rescue — the Red Team — and the Suffolk Police Department — the Blue Team — will battle it out in a friendly game of flag football at Peanut Park at 11 a.m. on May 20. Entry is a $5 donation, and concessions are available for purchase.

The money will go toward the American Cancer Society’s Relay For Life — which, incidentally, has purple as its color.

This is the third year the game has been played, and the firefighters are looking for their first win in the series. The game has a fun atmosphere with friendly competition among people who work together every day, as well as their family members and friends who will be in attendance.

The game is one of many fundraisers coming up for Relay For Life, which is just around the corner on May 16-17 at Bennett’s Creek Park. So far, according to the event website, 61 teams and 558 participants have raised $85,308.48.

There’s still time to form a team and raise money for the event. You can also show up and participate that night, helping teams raise money through food sales and other fundraisers they will be doing on site.

The all-night event will include entertainment, food and more. There are also somber moments, such as the survivor’s lap that kicks off the event and the luminaria ceremony, held in memory of those who have lost their battle with cancer and in honor of those who have fought or are still fighting.

It would be hard to find someone in America who doesn’t know someone who has had cancer. The search for a cure could hardly be more important. The time to act is now.

Red and blue truly do make purple, both on the painter’s brush and on the flag football field. Hopefully, they also make a cure for cancer, and sometime soon.

For more information about Relay, visit www.relayforlife.org/suffolkva.