SPANISH FORT, Ala. — When Fred Kelley and Ronnie King peddled up to Premiere Cinemas Friday evening, the exhausted Monroeville men thought they’d missed all the festivities.

“Those doors swung open and we rode on in to a standing-room-only crowd, and I don’t think I’ve ever felt so much love in one room. It felt like riding onto Victory Lane at a NASCAR event it was so overpowering,” said Kelley, founder of Peddlin’ for a Cure.

In its eighth year, the annual Monroeville-based bike ride benefiting the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life celebrated the life of Marie Dunn who lost her battle with cancer on July 25, 2010. Past events have concluded everywhere from the USS Alabama to the stairs of Alabama’s capitol, but the 2011 event collaborated with the movie theater to provide a Monroeville connection by offering a screening of the classic “To Kill a Mockingbird” based on Monroeville native Harper Lee’s iconic novel.

Kelley said the ride itself raised $95,000 via donations and per-mile pledges for the 193 riders making the 85-mile trek.

By Monday morning, however, Kelley said the total figure had eclipsed $101,000, bringing the effort’s cumulative contribution to cancer research and support to more than $950,000.

Will Sanders, director of Premiere Cinemas in Spanish Fort, called the event a “huge success,” attracting hundreds of supporters and raising nearly $600 in-house through a dollar fundraiser and proceeds from the “To Kill a Mockingbird” ticket sales.

“We are very excited about what Fred Kelley and the Peddlin’ team from Monroeville have accomplished. This was a great community turnout, and we hope to do it again next year,” Sanders said.

Kelley, who himself suffers from congestive heart failure yet somehow manages to make the finish line each year, said he has no doubt after eight years that the event is blessed in the truest sense of the word.

“I really believe that God is in this bike ride. The very fact that it can stir the interest that this little thing has stirred and raise the kind of money it raises each year in only one day, we couldn’t do that unless there was a higher power steering the course,” he said.

Kelley said for him the day was not about speed or agility but commitment and taking in every experience along the way.

King, he said, joined the cause when he learned the 2011 ride would benefit Dunn, a beloved community figure. The 50ish owner of King Grass Co. endured a great deal of ribbing from his employees, however, when they learned he was asking for per-mile donations.

“That’ll only be $5, Mr. Ronnie,” Kelley said they told him, to which he replied, “Well, get your pocketbooks ready.”

And true, at any point along the way, either man could have hopped on the bus trailing behind the fundraiser to scoop up any who wanted a ride.

Neither man yielded, however, and Kelley said he was amazed when the duo began picking up police escorts at practically every city along the way and even the Baldwin County Sheriff’s assistance when they hit an unincorporated patch.

“Every time we thought we were gonna have to give it up, there’d be somebody else coming up behind us, pushing us to keep going,” Kelley said.

Fred Kelley Ministries

Although a beloved community event, Peddlin’ for a Cure is only one aspect of Fred Kelley’s personal ministry. The Monroeville disc jockey, who suffers from congestive heart failure, lost 100 pounds and has managed to keep it off for 10 years, enabling him to make the trek each year.

Kelley feels called to share his testimony with all who will listen and frequently speaks to community groups and churches across the state free of charge.

For more information, e-mail Kelley at fredkelleyministries@yahoo.com.