Hormel Foods Corp. employees (left to right) Matt Neisen, Skyler Evenson, Josh Becker, Max Ochsenius, Liz Nelson, and Elton Edland present a check Sept. 23 totaling about $3,070 for cancer research to Dr. Zigang Dong, executive director of The Hormel Institute. -- Photo provided

Employees from the Hormel Foods Corp. Austin plant donated more than $3,000 on Friday, Sept. 23, to The Hormel Institute’s world-renowned cancer research.

Hormel Foods workers who participated in the annual Deryl Arnold Memorial Golf Tournament presented a check in the amount of $3,070 to The Institute’s Executive Director Dr. Zigang Dong. The tournament is a long-time event named in memory of a former Hormel Foods plant manager. In recent years, the tournament has raised money for The Institute’s cancer research, and, with this year’s gift, now has given nearly $8,000.

“It is good to see the money raised goes to local research,” said Elton Edland, one of the Hormel Foods workers who presented the check.

As with any donation, 100 percent of the money will go directly into cancer research at The Institute.

Partnerships with the community are vital for raising money to support cancer research and generating much encouragement for the researchers, Dong said.

“We continue to work aggressively toward our goal of discovering ways to prevent and control cancer as quickly as possible, and that is how we can best show our deep appreciation for the unwavering community support for our cutting-edge research,” Dong said.

This year’s Deryl Arnold Memorial Golf Tournament drew 72 golfers on Aug. 28 to the River Oaks Golf Course in Austin.

Dr. Edward “Ted” Hinchcliffe, leader of the Cellular Dynamics research section at The Institute, addressed the golfers following their round, speaking about his research and the importance of financial support in the fight against cancer.

With one of the best publishing records in the world, The Hormel Institute is a world-renowned medical research center specializing in researching nontoxic ways to prevent or control cancer. It comprises a group of highly successful medical scientists who have focused their efforts on determining the basic molecular mechanisms of cancer development to create new anti-cancer agents.