Charles Garland, president of the board of Twin Oaks Federal Credit Union (far left) and Carrie Payne manager of Twin Oaks FCU (far right) present Wendy Lilly (center) with a donation to her “Charlie’s Angels” Relay for Life team. Lilly and her teammates cooked for the recent Twin Oaks FCU annual meeting and Payne said the credit union wanted to help out the upcoming Relay in some way, pointing out cancer affects everyone.

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MASON COUNTY — There are many who are joining the local fight against cancer by organizing teams for the upcoming American Cancer Society Relay For Life for Mason County - each with their own unique reasons for organizing.

Valerie Clay is the team captain for the “Home Team,” a group of employees, volunteers and friends of the Pleasant Valley Home Health and Hospice Department. This team has been working over the past months to raise money for Relay. They are no strangers to Relay. They participated in Relay several years ago and then were absent. This is the second year since they have rejoined the Relay. When asked why they Relay, Clay states that it’s what we should do for our community. This group works with patients everyday who are fighting cancer and Clay feels that it just wouldn’t be right if they didn’t help the cause.

The “Sacred Hearts” of the Sacred Heart Catholic Church is a newcomer team for Relay for Life. The team captain is Judy Browning. Browning explains cancer has affected her family and she felt so strong about participating that she asked for support from her church and the support has been overwhelming. Although this is the first time the Sacred Heart Church has participated, Browning has helped with Relay in the past as a teacher at New Haven Elementary School. Being a team captain can sometimes be hectic, Browning states, but she is looking forward to the night of the event so that they can experience the entire event with other teams in the county.

“Charlie’s Angels” is a group of friends of the late Charlie Peyatt who lost her battle with breast cancer. This group is formed by friends and church members who knew Peyatt before, during and after her battle with cancer. This group, led by her friends, work endlessly, not only for Relay for Life, but other organizations in the community in the fight against cancer.

These are only three of the many teams participating in Relay this year.

In future weeks the Mason County Relay for Life Committee will profile other teams. Regardless of each team’s specific reason, the common thread of participating in Relay is to unite the community in the fight against cancer.

This year’s ACS Relay for Life for Mason County is planned for 6 p.m., June 16 at the athletic complex at Point Pleasant Junior / Senior High School.