And for the past nine years, she and her four sisters have honored their father’s memory by fielding a team in the Johnston County Relay for Life.

J.D. Pate, 62, died three months after learning he had cancer. In the years since then, his daughters have raised money for cancer research by selling raffle tickets, T-shirts and stuffed animals.

This past week, the sisters were at the Relay for Life with their “Leaping for a Cure” campsite. The team brought 72 stuffed-animal frogs to sell. Moody’s brother-in-law, Rodney Bentley, made colorful wooden frogs to adorn the space.

A Micro resident, Moody expected her team to bring in $30,000 for this year’s Relay for Life. “He would be so proud,” she said of her father. “We are very competitive. We are either the top or next-to-top team that raises the most money. It gets hard sometimes, but we know we made a difference.”

Cancer has struck several members of the Moody family. Her niece, Kelsey Bentley, now 13, was diagnosed with leukemia 10 years ago, but survived. Also, Moody’s sister, Sue Pate, beat breast cancer. Taking part in Relay for Life is “near and dear to our hearts,” Moody said.

Employees from Dressbarn also came together to take part in this year’s event. Team captain Beth Girardi and her husband built a mock pink and white barn to place in front of their tent. Pink and white are the store’s signature colors. The team sold keychains, stuffed animals, soap and raffle tickets for a $100 gift card. Usually, they raise a few thousand dollars each year.

“You never know if that $1 buys that one raffle ticket that will push it over the edge and find a cure,” said Girardi, who works at Dressbarn in Morrisville.

Dressbarn’s team has several cancer survivors, including Girardi, who overcame cervical cancer. She has a family history of cancer. Her grandfather died from cancer, while her father survived.

“Cancer doesn’t discriminate,” Girardi said. “It affects every walk of life. It affects every race. It affects everybody.”