LUTCHER — The St. James Parish Relay for Life Leadership Team recently kicked off a new season of Relay by celebrating past successes and looking ahead to an exciting year.

Thanks to the support of the community, the 2016 St. James Parish Relay for Life was one of the top fundraising events in the nation, earning more than $250,000 for the American Cancer Society and winning first place for these efforts (per capita) in Louisiana and the Mid-South Division.

This was an amazing accomplishment, organizers said, and the fight for a cure continues as they remain “in it to win it.” This year’s “game-over” themed event will be held from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. April 1 at Lutcher Park.

The next Team Captain Meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 15 in the St. James Parish Hospital Community Education Room (located in the medical plaza). Team members, potential teams, sponsors and anyone interested in learning more about fundraising and/or getting involved are invited to attend.

This year’s Leadership Team is led by Brandi Louque, Chair (brandilouque@hotmail.com); Bridget Matherne, Co-Chair (bridget_louque@yahoo.com) and ACS Relay Specialist Lauren Bolles (lauren.bolles@cancer.org).

If you are interested in learning more but can’t make a meeting, contact one of the event leaders or visit the parish’s Relay Facebook Page (search @stjamesrelay).

The Relay Facebook Page is a great resource to learn about team fundraisers, upcoming meetings and events and to print luminaria and fundraising forms.

To register a team online, visit relayforlife.org/stjamesla.

The American Cancer Society is the nationwide, voluntary health organization dedicated to eliminating cancer by preventing cancer, saving lives and diminishing suffering.