Local celebrities donated their time Thursday evening to raise money for the American Cancer Society through the Will’s Willing Walkers Relay For Life team’s “Celebrity Waiter” fundraising event. Pictured are the 5:30 servers including Don Garrard, Billy Wilson, Gary Williams, Wanda Baker, Shelia Ward Underwood, Connie Green, Mark Holland, Melissa Mayfield, Paula McDowell, Denise Cheatham, Chris Fretwell, Brian Hamilton, Gary Cummings and William E. Bishop.

Cancer is something that has arguably affected almost any person you would meet on the street.
Whether it is a family member, a friend, a co-worker or even your own self, cancer is on the minds of many people, and finding a cure is something that takes top priority for Franklin County residents.
As the annual Relay For Life cancer walk draws near, Franklin County Relay teams have been sponsoring many different events to raise money that will ultimately be used in cancer research and to one day stop the spread of this deadly disease.
This past Thursday night, members of the Will’s Willing Walkers Relay team hosted a “Celebrity Waiter” event at Taylor’s Restaurant in Russellville where public officials, local candidates, entertainers and others waited tables and donated all their tip money to the American Cancer Society through the Will’s Willing Walkers team.
Team co-captain Wanda Myrick said the “Celebrity Waiter” event is something the team has sponsored for the past eight years and it has always been a fun and successful event.
“We really appreciate the people who come out and support the event and the people who donate their time to participate,” Myrick said. “I know there are many other things these people could be doing, but there aren’t enough words to express how thankful we are that they care enough about supporting the American Cancer Society and finding a cure.”
Myrick said finding a cure for cancer was an important goal for each person on the Will’s Willing Walkers team.
“Every person on our team has been affected by cancer in some way,” Myrick said. “We all have our reasons we want to find a cure.”
The Will’s Willing Walkers team was first started 16 years ago to support team co-captain Cynthia Scott’s son, Will Scott, who was diagnosed with a brain tumor when he was only 18 months old.
Will would have been 18 this year.
“It’s hard enough to see adults who have to struggle with cancer, but to see a child go through that is just heartbreaking,” Myrick said. “We hope that we can keep raising money so that at some point in our lifetime we’ll see the discovery of a cure for cancer.”
Local celebrities that participated in the “Celebrity Waiter” event included Connie Green, candidate for probate judge; Wanda Baker, Valley State Bank; William E. Bishop, candidate for commissioner of District 1; Brian Hamilton, attorney with McDowell, Beason & Hamilton; District Judge Paula McDowell; Suzanne Franklin; Shelia Ward Underwood, Wood Thompson Insurance; Jason Miller, Russellville Fire Department; Gary Councilman, Russellville councilman; Don Garrard, former revenue commissioner; Brooklyn Hall, singer; Billy Wilson, candidate for Commissioner of District 1; Jeff Barksdale, candidate for circuit clerk; Chris Fretwell, candidate for Commissioner of District 1; Anthony Bentley, candidate for Commissioner of District 4; Gary Williams, Superintendent of the Franklin County School System; Blaze Bishop, singer; and Stratt Byars, candidate for probate judge.
Local celebrities who were unable to attend that made donations included Don Hastings, commissioner of District 4; Senator Roger Bedford; Paul Lovelace, pharmacist at Russellville Pharmacy; Ralton Baker, Franklin County Board of Education member; Alan Rhudy, Community Spirit Bank; Greg and Nancy Bowling; Kody, Jeff and Crista Madden; Rep. Johnny Mack Morrow and Dr. Martha Morrow; Howard Hutcheson, commissioner of District 2; Wyman Pounders, candidate for commissioner of District 2; and David Grissom, councilman and candidate for Russellville mayor.
To find out more information about local Relay For Life fundraisers, visit www.relayforlife.org/franklinal, click on the arrow next to “More Event Information” on the right-hand side of the screen, and click on “Fundraisers & Activities.”