Tuesday, April 24, 2012

POB Relay for Life Team Gets Help from an Unexpected Place...


PriorityOne Bank has actively participated in the Relay for Life program, benefiting the American Cancer Society for more than 10 years. Each year they start planning months in advance, form a team, set a goal and start their fundraising efforts. The PriorityOne team averages about $11,000 each year for the Relay, which adds up to a whopping $110,000 in donations over the past 10 years. This year, the Relay team was approached by a young man named Joshua Thomas; who is a senior at Mendenhall High School; as part of his Senior class project; and because he lost his grandfather to cancer about 5 year ago, Joshua wanted to help raise money for the American Cancer Society. Because his high school did not have an active Relay for Life team, Josh came to Vicki Powell; a loan officer at PriorityOne Bank in Mendenhall and a fellow church member about joining the PriorityOne Bank Relay Team. We welcomed his enthusiasm and willingness to help with open arms.

Joshua organized a go-cart race in Raymond, MS on Saturday, April 7, 2012 to help raise money to benefit the POB Relay Team and the American Cancer Society. Josh and his mother came to the Mendenhall branch the following week to bring in the proceeds from his fundraiser. We were floored to see that this young man had managed to raise $3,625.00 on his own to donate to Relay for Life. Cynthia Bynum, team leader for the PriorityOne Bank Simpson County Relay Team, said, "We are so thankful for Josh and his commitment to Relay for Life." We couldn't be more proud to have Joshua as a member of our team and we want to express our thanks to him for everything he has done, not only for our Relay team, but for the American Cancer Society and cancer research as a whole.