ISU students and faculty and members of the Ames community will be running for a good cause this weekend.

The Story County Relay for Life will be held Sunday from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Lied Recreation Center. The proceeds will go toward the Story County chapter of the American Cancer Society.

Joe Colletti, co-chair of Relay for Life, said about 50 to 60 of the 100 teams that are participating will be made up of students.

One such team is the Louden Flyers, which will be making its second appearance at the Relay for Life.

Matthew Bettis, sophomore in elementary education and resident of Louden House in Helser Hall, said his team is running to “raise awareness for the American Cancer Society and to promote a good cause.”

Two teams will represent Phi Delta Theta fraternity, 2035 Sunset Drive, in this year’s event. Adam Lane, sophomore in elementary education and member of Phi Delta Theta, said the teams’ members were attracted to the crusade.

“It is a really good event that brings out competition between students to raise money for a great cause during a completely positive day,” he said.

A team from Tau Beta Pi Honor Society also will be participating.

Randy Hoskin, senior in chemical engineering and member of Tau Beta Pi, said the relay is a good outlet to get people active.

“[It is a] great chance for the community and campus to get involved together to benefit something that is important to all of us, our lives,” he said.

Colletti, associate professor of forestry, said increased understanding is one of the main goals for this year’s event.

“One of the important parts of the event is not only for people to come together for the cause- generating donations for the American Cancer Society-but also to help educate the people,” he said.

Colletti said there will be several booths set up with topics ranging from healthy diets to different types of cancer. Some booths will have activities and games to make learning about these issues more fun, he said.

Micki Sandquist is the income development specialist for the Midwest Division of the American Cancer Society.

“The event goal for this year is to have over 100 teams participate and to raise $80,000 for the American Cancer Society,” she said.

This will be a considerable increase over last year’s net return, Colletti said, which was about $68,000.

For those who aren’t on a team but still want to participate, there’s another option: Peggy’s Teams.

Peggy’s Teams were named for Peg Neppl Darrah, who lost her battle to cancer in 1981. She was an ISU track star, and the Relay for Life is held in her memory.

“You can participate on Peggy’s Teams by just walking in the day of the event, and any donations of $25 or more gets you a T-shirt,” Colletti said.