The Perry-Castañeda Library held its annual bake sale Wednesday to raise funds for the American Cancer Society.

The initiative was a part of The Hearts of Texas State Employee Charity campaign which occurs in October every year.

Susan Hallgren, senior library specialist in the Bibliographic Database Management Department, has organized the event since 2005 and said the American Cancer Society was important to donate to.

“I feel everyone knows someone who is affected by cancer, so if we can raise money and do what we can for research to help that cause and find a cure for this illness, it would be great,” Hallgren said.

Loretta Acevedo, a retired library employee, said she was pleased the funds were going to the American Cancer Society. Acevedo said her sister died from cancer at the age of 38.

“I know how cancer can affect not only the individual, but family and friends and loved ones,” Acevedo said. “So I always think the cancer society is a good thing to support. It was pretty devastating to all of us as a family.”

Hallgren said the bake sale has raised $1,130, making it the most successful bake sale in PCL history. This exceeds the previous record of $983 from last year.

Acevedo and her husband, Stephen Stein, a manager in Computer Services at the library, helped bake items for the sale.

“I wanted it to be very successful, so I baked and baked all of this stuff,” Acevedo said. “We have so many good cooks in the library — a lot of them chipped in.”

Finance senior Hoai Truong purchased a piece of pumpkin pie and a cookie from the bake sale to share with a friend while studying for an accounting exam. 

Truong said she was pleased to know her purchase was going toward a good cause, especially one she was personally connected with.

“I have a good friend back home whose mom passed away from cancer, so it does touch home a little bit,” Truong said.

Hallgren said she was unsure of when the bake sale began, but the tradition has grown in popularity each year around campus as other departments now want to contribute to the cause through baking goods and buying products.

“We actually have a pretty big following now from the UT community, so folks look for us every October,” Hallgren said.