Hormel Foods Deryl Arnold Mem'l donation 2013

(Left to right): Gail Dennison, The Hormel Institute; Jesse Cass, Hormel Foods; Sue Lunde, Hormel Foods; Diane Fuller, Hormel Foods; Liz Nelson, Hormel Foods; Tim Fritz, Austin Plant Manager, Hormel Foods; Associate Director Dr. Ann M. Bode, The Hormel Institute; Dr. Edward Hinchcliffe, The Hormel Institute; Elton Edland, Hormel Foods; and Dr. Joshua Liao, The Hormel Institute.

Deryl Arnold Memorial Golf Tournament now has donated over $13,300 since 2009

Nearly $3,000 was donated Tuesday by employees of the Hormel Foods Corporation’s Austin plant in support of The Hormel Institute’s world-renowned cancer research.

Tim Fritz, Plant Manager of the Hormel Foods Austin Plant, and other employees presented a $2,982 donation to The Hormel Institute’s Associate Director Dr. Ann M. Bode. The money was raised through the plant’s annual Deryl Arnold Memorial Golf Tournament on Aug. 5 at the Oaks Golf Club near Hayfield, marking the long-time event’s fifth-straight year of devoting its fundraising efforts to support cutting-edge cancer research at The Hormel Institute, University of Minnesota-Mayo Clinic, in Austin.

Named in memory of former Hormel Foods plant manager Deryl Arnold, who passed away from cancer, the tournament now has donated more than $13,300 since 2009 to The Hormel Institute’s research focused on discoveries leading to the prevention and control of cancer.

“It was a great day, and we take pride in raising this money in Deryl Arnold’s name,” Fritz said.

In addition to the annual golf tourney, the Hormel Foods Austin Plant also raises funding every February as part of Austin’s “Paint the Town Pink” citywide initiative to raise awareness and support for The Hormel Institute’s breast cancer research.

The Hormel Institute’s strong support from our community, such as this generous gift from Hormel Foods, is vital for furthering the Institute’s cancer research, Executive Director Dr. Zigang Dong said.

“All of us at The Hormel Institute are deeply grateful for this outstanding support – and the continuing encouragement it brings – given by our friends at Hormel Foods through the Deryl Arnold Memorial Golf Tournament,” Dong said. “Our ‘thank you’ can best be expressed through making cutting-edge progress in the fight against cancer.”

The Hormel Institute, University of Minnesota, is a world-renowned medical research center in Austin, Minn., focused on discoveries leading to the prevention and control of cancer.

In July 2013, The Hormel Foundation announced a $23 million commitment toward The Hormel Institute’s next major expansion set to break ground in 2014. The expansion will add needed laboratories and space for its International Center of Research Technology. The Hormel Foundation will provide $13.5 million in funding as a match to the State of Minnesota’s bonding for the expansion and an additional $9.5 million for recruiting top scientists, equipping labs with state-of-the-art technologies, and creating a cutting-edge environment for progressive cancer research.

Currently, leaders at The Hormel Institute are hiring three new cancer research sections to fill the remaining lab space created by the Institute’s 2006-2008 major expansion. The Hormel Foundation contributed $16.7 million toward the 2006-2008 project that tripled the Institute’s size and allowed space for doubling the number of faculty and staff jobs.