Bikers and Families to Fight Cancer This Weekend in St. Joseph

ST. JOSEPH -- You can enjoy a day full of events tomorrow (Saturday) in St. Joseph that help in the fight against cancer.

The 4th annual Joe Boys Poker Run invites everybody with a motorcycle -- or any other vehicle -- to come out to help raise money for the American Cancer Society.

The poker run begins at 11:00 a.m. tomorrow and has five stops at which participants pick up a playing card. The rider with the best poker hand at the end of the race wins a $100 grand prize.

"It's primarily motorcycles, but all cars, trucks, whatever, are welcome to join us -- they just have to be able to go 55 [miles per hour]," says Chairman Josh Schmitz, who started the event four years ago.

The day's events also include a hog roast and silent auction at 5:00 p.m. and an after-party with a DJ at El Paso starting at 7:00 p.m.

"It's family-oriented, we keep it safe so [families] have as much fun as everybody else does," Schmitz says.

"We're hoping to double [the turnout] we had last year -- but it's not really about the numbers for me, it's just showing that we care about something other than ourselves."

Schmitz says being able to hold the the cancer-fighting event is very meaningful to him.

"The list of people that I have personally known who were either killed or affected by cancer is pretty long," Schmitz says. "I'm not smart enough to actually come up with a cure, so this is my way of doing my part [in the fight]."

You can pre-register for the poker run tonight (Friday) at the La Playette in St. Joseph from 6:00 to 10:00 p.m. Otherwise you can register on the day of the run starting at 10:00 a.m. at the American Legion.