Organizers for Dexter's annual Relay for Life got the OK from the Dexter Village Council Monday night to hold their event in Monument Park this spring.

The fifth annual fundraising event for the American Cancer Society will take place May 14-15 in downtown Dexter. Organizers wanted a more visible location for the fundraiser than its previous one on school property. They hope to raise $75,000.

The council heard a presentation from Juli Huddleston, logistics coordinator, earlier this month in which she said fundraising had dropped off from previous years.

The group got an early start on its fundraising efforts this year with a special calendar called the BRAve Men of Dexter.

"We want people to think of it as a Family Play Day, or a 24-hour Dexter Daze,” said Caroline Altomare, promotions chairman for the event.

Anyone can participate, Altomare said. The group will host a kickoff meeting for the event on Feb 9 at the Dexter District Library at 7 p.m.

Among the special events are the 10 p.m. luminaria ceremony on May 14, which honors people who have been touched by cancer. During the ceremony, candles are lit inside bags filled with sand and each one bears the name of a person touched by cancer. In addition, participants often walk a lap in silent remembrance.

"Relay is a unique opportunity for our community to come together to celebrate people who have battled cancer, remember those they've lost, and fight back against the disease," Altomare said.

Lisa Allmendinger is a reporter with AnnArbor.com. She can be reached at lisaallmendinger@annarbor.com. For more Dexter stories, visit our Dexter page.