WoodmenLife Chapters in Virginia Support Award-Winning Relay For Life Fundraiser

For several years, WoodmenLife chapters in Virginia have worked together to support Relay For Life of Charlotte County. Representative Robert Clowdis got involved because he is passionate about contributing to his community and helping find a cure for cancer.

One of the biggest fundraising events every year, which WoodmenLife helps with, is the Truckers Parade Against Cancer (TPAC), a 14.7-mile parade of trucks that is held in four Charlotte County towns. Established in 2000, TPAC has grown from 40 trucks to more than 300. Each truck has a banner displaying names of cancer survivors or those who have lost their battle.

“My mother-in-law, father-in-law, and grandfather have all passed from different types of cancer,” Clowdis said, “so that’s why this event is close to me.”

Making an Impact

In total, TPAC has raised more than $2 million for Relay For Life of Charlotte County. Last year, TPAC earned the first-place award for the Southeast Region Team of the Year and was named the 2024 Pat Flynn Spirit of Relay Nationwide Team of the Year.

The fundraising efforts have allowed TPAC to fund research grants and sponsor cancer screenings with local hospitals.

“We’ve had two or three (TPAC) team members who have passed from pancreatic cancer,” Clowdis said. So this past year, the team chose to fund a grant aimed at researching pancreatic cancer.

The Truckers Parade Against Cancer (TPAC) is a 14.7-mile parade of trucks that is held in four Charlotte County towns. Since it was established in 2000, TPAC has grown from 40 trucks to more than 300.

A Proud Supporter

WoodmenLife has been a proud supporter of TPAC for 13 years. Clowdis said Chapter 179 in Wylliesburg, VA, has provided American flags for each truck on the parade route, cooked hot dogs for the drivers, and ridden on trucks in the parade.

Clowdis also provides a 40-by-60-inch American flag that is displayed in the air on the parade route.

Sheila Jones, a longtime WoodmenLife member and co-founder of TPAC, said WoodmenLife has been a “blessing” to the team.

“Those American flags on the trucks — that has just become a staple,” she said. “I know it’s hard work for Robert and the other volunteers, but it adds a special touch to the parade. We are so delighted to have the group — you couldn’t ask for a nicer group of people.”

Planning for the Future

With such a monumental year in 2024 — in which they raised more than $180,000 — Jones and Clowdis said they hope to ramp up fundraising for this year, the team’s 25th anniversary.

“The population in Charlotte County is about 12,000 people,” Clowdis said. “You take a county that small and see that they’re able to get 300 trucks out on a day and drive the nearly-15-mile course, present names of those fighting cancer or who have lost the battle to cancer — it’s just amazing.”

Jones said she is appreciative of WoodmenLife’s continued support for TPAC.

“Our primary goal as a team is we always want to honor our survivors, and we want to remember the ones who are lost,” she said.

Written by: Cheyenne Alexis, Communications Strategist

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