Within an hour of its start, the All For One Cure music festival had raised $200.
Founders Molleshree "Molly" Karna and Kalliopi "Kalli" Drakos, recent graduates of the Science and Math Academy at Aberdeen High School, organized the event, which scheduled 27 bands in an all-day music festival on June 23.
Early in the day, there weren't many fans at Cedar Lane Regional Park, but with Chasing Morgan headlining at 7 p.m., Molly said, "as the day moves on we expect more people."
From the beginning, however, several bands had already shown up even though their performances weren't until later in the day. The Alckemists weren't playing until 3 p.m., but came early.
Sheila Graves, a member, said the event was "pretty cool" and they all had friends or knew someone with cancer.
"We all really support the cause," she said.
Another act, the Shelby Blondell band, was there early, too, waiting for their chance to play at 1 p.m. Shelby, a recent high school graduate and leader of the group, said she had done something similar while at the Seton Keough High School.
She, too, organized a concert called Concert For A Cure while a sophomore there, to raise money for St. Jude's Research Center. For this event, she was excited.
"It's a really good cause," she said, adding that it was a "nice day," too.
That was the running theme of the day, with visitors to the shows saying it was a great cause. Justin McLoughlin, mother of one of the members of The Alckemists, came out to support her son, Jack, but also said it was a good cause.
"Who doesn't want to support that?" she asked of the American Cancer Society.
Kacy McGill, who helped Kalli and Molly plan, agreed, saying the American Cancer Society "is a great charity," and the music festival in general was a good way to raise the money.
Kalli and Molly, too, said they chose the American Cancer Society because cancer is a "big disease" and everyone knows someone, whether friend or relative, who has suffered from it.
Both girls have grandmothers with cancer, they said.
The All For One Cure festival is a follow up to a smaller three-band concert they held last year in order to raise money for their Relay For Life team, which also benefits the American Cancer Society.
Using music festivals like those, Kalli said, is better than having to go door-to-door.
"It's a creative way to raise money," she added, "and have a great time."
Like then, when they raised $500 from $5 ticket sales, the girls weren't concerned with reaching any goals. Anything they could raise, they said, would be enough for them. This year's concert features more bands at $10 tickets, but the goal is the same.
"This whole thing is just to benefit the American Cancer Society," Molly said, adding that, hopefully, research will lead to a "cancer-free future."
Although the event was cut short to 10 p.m. instead of 11 because of noise concerns from the park owner and the Harford County Sheriff's Office, Molly and Kalli said the concert was "going pretty well."
"It's definitely an easy cause to advocate for," Kalli said, with Molly adding, "but it's also a really sincere one."