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Posted on Thu, Feb 24, 2011 : 4 p.m.

Orville, the cancer-fighting pig on first stop of 14-week Relay for Life fundraising journey

By Lisa Allmendinger

Orville, the traveling, cancer-fighting pig, spent this week at the Dexter Collision Center on the first leg of his 14-week fundraising travels throughout Dexter.

The large, off-white piggy bank is collecting donations for Dexter’s Relay for Life on May 14-15 at Monument Park. “He was an ‘ugly gift’ from my sister for Christmas this year,” said Rachel Wilkinson, wellness center manager at Dexter Pharmacy, who lugged the 17-pound piggy bank to Dexter Collision last Friday.

Orville, the pig.JPG

Orville, the cancer-fighting pig, sits on the desk of Brad Taylor at Dexter Collision Center in Dexter on his first stop of a 14-week fundraising tour for Relay for Life.

Lisa Allmendinger | AnnArbor.com

Brad Taylor, owner of the Collision Center, offered to be the first stop on the Relay for Life fundraising pig’s tour.

Orville is one of a number of fundraising ideas that organizers and participants involved in Relay for Life have dreamed up this year. In 2007, the event raised $57,000. In 2008, that amount increased to $94,000 and in 2009, $100,000 was raised. Donations were down somewhat in 2010, when the 35 teams raised $70,000.

The pig is the size of two basketballs and it’s estimated that he’d weigh 60-80 pounds full of coins.

Orville will be at some of the following businesses during the next 13 weeks: Dexter Bakery, Bob's Party Store, Classic Pizza, Jazzercise, Hackney Hardware, Hazel's Home Cooking, Katie’s Pub, Marks Auto, The Parts Peddler and Robin Reed Barber Shop, Wilkinson said.

She hopes that people will seek out the pig at local businesses and contribute to the cause but she’s not set a fundraising goal.

“I hadn’t really thought about it,” she said. “I just want people to have fun looking for him.”

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