ST. CLOUD -- The annual Relay for Life of Central Minnesota is this Friday night here in St. Cloud.

Jaime Buley is a cancer survivor and one of the event co-chairs. She says the money raised will go to the American Cancer Society to help local people diagnosed with the disease.

It will go anywhere from the services they offer for rides for people getting treatment, to the 1-800 number that is 24/7, to helping with hotel stays and all the things that they do.  But then it also goes for research, which is really important to me.

Buley says from the opening ceremony to the survivor lap, to the luminaria ceremony it is an emotional night.

It's a big night with a lot of emotions there's a lot of joy, there's a lot of grief, but I also feel like there's a big community of hope and it really changes your outlook when you see 500 people fighting for the same cause and you are.

Their goal is to raise $60,000 at the event. About 25 teams are registered for this year's Relay for Life.

The opening ceremony is at 6:00 p.m. at Apollo High School followed by a survivor lap.

The event is open to anyone to come to a watch, participate and donate.

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