Cancer survivors in Bainbridge filled the First United Methodist Church J.O. Smith Building Friday evening for a special supper honoring their survival and the passing of those who battled the disease.

Friends and family of the survivors also attended the supper.

Bainbridge Relay For Life Chairman Lacey Addison said the event is the perfect way to bring local survivors together to show support.

“We try to do this before (Relay For Life) every year to congregate and let everyone know when relay is going to be,” Addison said. “This supper always helps us have a bigger turnout of purple shirts at Relay, which means more survivors turning up.”

The survivors at the dinner were asked to bring a friend or family member, which Addison said often ends up being a caregiver. Though the supper is for the local survivors, she said the evening was also dedicated to honoring the effort and love caregivers gave.

“The caregivers are also honored because that road the survivors went down, the caregivers went down to,” Addison said.

Richard Hughes, a survivor himself, has been sponsoring the supper with his family for the past 15 years, calling the experience “rewarding.”

“Just knowing that I’m helping someone and putting a smile on their face,” he said, “it’s just something I feel I’ve been led to do. It feels great.”

Pam Burch was the honored speaker. A cancer survivor for nine and a half years, Burch learned on New Year’s Eve 2014 the disease she conquered has returned to her tailbone. Local businesses and friends have started several fundraisers in Bainbridge to benefit Burch.

Addison and Hughes urged the community to attend Bainbridge’s Relay for Life event on April 18 at Bainbridge High School on Highway 84. Those looking for more information can contact Addison at (229) 726-4273.