Look out local business owners, the Barons’ Ball cowboys and cowgirls are on their way to round up some auction items for the 2006 American Cancer Society’s Barons’ Ball. The cowboys and cowgirls, also known as loyal volunteers for the American Cancer Society, will paint the town red on Saturday, August 26.

Their plan is to work together in teams, or posses, and hit the major retail areas of Fayette County. They will be confiscating, or gratefully accepting, items to be auctioned off at the 2006 Barons’ Ball. Generous gift giving retailers will be rewarded for their generosity- their store will be branded with a bandana on their door handle and their employees will be given stickers identifying the establishment as a generous 2006 Barons’ Ball donor. Auction item donors will also be listed in the official Barons’ Ball Auction Catalog that is distributed to all invitees to the event, as well as the patrons as they arrive on the night of the annual gala.

The fourth Annual American Cancer Society - Fayette County's Barons’ Ball will be held on Saturday, November 4 at the Wyndham Peachtree Conference Center in Peachtree City. The Barons’ Ball is a major source of funding for the American Cancer Society. The last three Barons’ Balls have raised over $460,000. The proceeds from this event contribute to the local programs of the American Cancer Society that are made available to our community free of charge as well as funding research and development.

Serving as chairperson of this years' event is Susan Osborne, a Peachtree City resident and last year’s Barons’ Ball sponsorship chairperson. Osborne is best known in Barons’ Ball circles, not only as a great fundraiser, but also as the generous donor who graciously settled an auction mix up at the first Barons’ Ball by purchasing a flag from the World Trade Center site and immediately donating it back to the American Cancer Society, so that another bidder could purchase the item and take home. It is that kind of dedication and generosity to the cause that makes Osborne a great chairperson for the event, as well as her personal history with the disease, as it has significantly touched her family with the loss of her step-father to cancer several years ago.

Dedication to the cause of helping to find a cure for cancer and helping those who suffer from the disease is not demonstrated by only Susan in the Osborne household. Daughter Carissa, a sixth grader at St. Paul Lutheran School, recently donated 12 inches of her own hair to the Locks of Love organization. Carissa is hoping that her hair will be used to make a wig for a child who has cancer and has lost their hair to chemotherapy treatments.

The Barons’ Ball organizing committee will hit the town in their Barons’ Ball shirts on Saturday, August 26 from 10 a.m. until the last cowboy drops or every local retailer has generously given a gift for the 2006 Barons’ Ball auction. If you would like to volunteer to work with the 2006 Barons’ Ball organizing committee, make an auction donation, or become a sponsor of the event, please contact Nychelle Williams, senior community manager, at 770-460-8920.

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