Kansas University Hospital announced Thursday that former Kansas Sen. Bob Dole will serve as the honorary chairman for its eighth annual “Treads and Threads” fundraising event.

The Sept. 11 gala at the Kansas Speedway will benefit the clinical cancer program at KU Hospital, which is part of the KU Cancer Center. The event includes music, food and fireworks.

“As I learned when I was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1991, cancer does not discriminate,” Dole said in a news release. “It affects everyone, no matter your age, race, gender or status. With sustained effort, we will lessen cancer’s impact and give many more people a chance to live longer, more productive lives.”

The event has raised $3.3 million for the hospital in seven years.

KU also announced that Mark and Holly Faber will be the event chairs. Mark is the senior vice president for sales and business development for Sprint Center/AEG, and Holly is a clinical nurse in the operating room at KU Hospital.