WESTFIELD – Carole Link faced cancer, and Lily’s Hope provided her a wig free of charge. It helped her keep her dignity and a positive outlook. She and other vendors at Cross Roads Farm and Craft Market recently gave something back to this program by hosting Soup-R Saturday, a soup cookoff whose proceeds benefited Lily’s Hope, sponsored by the Zonta Club of Jamestown.

“What can I say about Lily’s Hope? For me it was such a positive experience, especially compared to all the other not-so-good news I’ve had,” Link said. “You get so much bad news thrown at you so quickly, and it can be overwhelming, but going into the Lily’s Hope area and working with them to find the right wig was uplifting.”

This year, Soup-R Saturday had 22 soups entered in the contest. The winners of the contest were as follows: Kyle Douglas in first place with chicken wing soup; Papa’s Restaurant in Ripley in second place with their signature dill pickle soup; and Wendy Graham in third place with her cold gazpacho soup. People’s choice winners were: Henry Link in first place with his hearty corn chowder; Jan Northrop’s in second place with her chicken tortilla soup; and Blanche Milliman in third place with her sauerkraut soup.

The total raised was $700 through the soup contest, including additional donations from the Westfield Legion Post 327 Auxiliary and Sons of the Legion.

“The Zonta Club is so pleased with the turnout and so touched by the gracious giving of soup, time, talents, supplies and just the sheer generosity of the Cross Roads Farm and Craft Market group,” said Rosie Papalia, a member of the club. “In holding this event Blanche, Henry and Wendy have all been so wonderful to us (Lily’s Hope) these past few years.”

Lily’s Hope is located at the WCA Cancer Treatment Center at Jones Memorial Hospital in Jamestown. It is a resource for women who live in, or are going through, cancer treatment in Chautauqua County. They can get a wig, hat, scarf and/or accessories free of charge. If you know of a woman who could benefit from Lily’s Hope, have her call the Cancer Treatment Center for an appointment at 664-8670.

The Zonta Club of Jamestown is one of 1,200 chapters of Zonta International with the mission of empowering women through service and advocacy. To learn more about Zonta, visit ZontaJamestown.org or find them on Facebook.

Open from the first Saturday in May until the last Saturday before Christmas, Cross Roads Farm and Craft Market, located at 6017 Westfield-Sherman Road (County Route 21) in Westfield, is a charming, rustic destination. The cooperative is always looking for more vendors and artists. For more information, visit TheCrossRoadsMarket.com, follow them on Twitter, or check out their Facebook page. During the 38-day season, the market is open Saturdays from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. and on some holidays.