On Friday, May 11 and Saturday, May 12, 43 local businesses, churches, schools and other organizations filled the Butler County Fairgrounds to support the American Cancer Society's annual fund raiser, Relay For Life.

The purpose of the event, according to the American Cancer Society, is to "celebrate survivors, remember loved ones and raise money for the fight against cancer."

Participants in this year's event successfully met the goal of $120,000, which will aid in continuing to fund the fight for cancer. According to the National Institutes of Health, the overall annual costs for cancer are approximately $107 billion.

A special thanks goes out to the community for the hard-work and the continuing support of the American Cancer Society.

As the second leading cause of death in the United States, about 552,200 Americans are expected to die of cancer in 2001

about 1,500 people a day. Since 1990, approximately 13 million new cases have been diagnosed.