Millie Wilson led the procession around the track at Long-Bell Stadium. Alongside and behind her, mostly clad in purple with a lot of cowboy hats and boots made their laps in Friday night’ annual Relay For Life.

The event is a fundraiser, with the proceeds going to the American Cancer Society and its efforts to eradicate cancer. Cancer survivors — and Wilson has survived three different bouts — take the first lap around the track, followed by the caregivers.

Wilson was first diagnosed with cancer 30 years ago. Her second diagnosis came 15 years ago and third was seven years ago.

“And I’m just here, and so happy,” she said. “I just thank God for a beautiful day and beautiful people. I just love Relay For Life.”

The annual Relay — and the large crowd it drew to the Liberty County Recreation Department’s track — “mean the world to me,” Wilson said.

“If I see people coming out here, that means they care about others and they believe in the cause,” she added. “There is a cause for Relay. We support it and we want to continue to do that, to carry on that tradition.”

This year’s Relay For Life set a goal of raising $100,000. That objective was smashed, with more than $185,000 raised and counting. Money raised goes toward research and for treatments. It also goes toward such efforts as getting cancer patients to and from their treatments.

Survivors and caregivers are recognized and so too are those who have lost the fight to cancer or those in the midst of one. There was a ceremonial bell along the track — it’s tradition for cancer survivors to ring the bell after their last treatment.

“I’ve rung it three times,” Wilson said. “And you just don’t know how much it means to ring that bell. It’s so rewarding. You haven’t finished the battle completely but you’ve gone through it so many times and you have succeeded.”