On Sunday, March 5, Mountville-based nonprofit Help The Fight will host its annual bingo event at Penn Manor High School, 100 E. Cottage Ave., Millersville. The fundraiser will open its doors at noon, followed by bingo at 1:30 p.m. Participants must be at least 18 years old to play, and tickets may be purchased in advance or at the door on the day of the event, if any tickets remain.

The fundraiser will include 20 games of bingo, as well as a few extra games that attendees can purchase tickets for. Each game will offer players an opportunity to win a designer purse, and an extra round will be held to give players a chance to win more than one purse. The bingo fundraiser serves as one of Help The Fight's main fundraisers held throughout the year, and this is the first year that the organization has elected to host it at Penn Manor High School.

The money raised from the fundraiser will directly benefit Help The Fight and its mission to provide financial assistance to those in the area who are battling breast cancer. "The money being raised is helping people in the community. It doesn't go toward anything other than financial aid to help those who need it," said Susie Dailey, patient coordinator for Help The Fight.

Help The Fight not only provides assistance to those in active treatment for breast cancer, but also provides the resources for people to access screening for early detection of breast cancer. The organization hosts five or six fundraisers every year and uses the proceeds to cover various bills that cancer patients may be struggling with such as rent, day care expenses, insurance premiums, car payments and utility costs. "Most patients will have a limited income because of treatment, so there's a real need to help these families with the financial aspect," said Bonnie Mann, treasurer of Help The Fight. "It takes a lot of burden off of them; they have enough going on."

Help The Fight began in 2009 as a bake sale to raise funds for cancer patients. The nonprofit has steadily grown over the years beyond a roadside stand that sells baked goods and has raised over $1 million for cancer patients since its inception.

For more information or to become a sponsor for the event, visit http://www.helpthefight.org.