CRANBERRY TWP — The Cranberry CUP will kick off for the 15th straight year tonight with a party at the Cranberry Highlands Golf Course.

CUP organizer Cathy Cortazzo said the doors will open at 6 p.m. and that entry into the party costs $25 a person. There will be a band, food donated from local restaurants and auction baskets.

The softball tournament starts at 8 a.m. Saturday as nearly 60 teams compete for the championship. The tournament will wrap up around 6 p.m. Sunday.

“We have more teams this year than ever,” Cortazzo said.

There also will be a 5K race in the Community Park starting at 8 a.m. Saturday.

The CUP annually raises money for an inspirational family in the township that is undergoing financial stress because of medical or other issues.

It has raised more than $1 million for families since its inception in 2000.

This year’s inspirational family is the Koliscak family, which includes Jason, 38, his wife, Melanie, 38, and their daughters Addison, 6, Alexis, 4, and Lanie, 3.

Doctors in 2005 diagnosed Jason Koliscak with primary sclerosing cholangitis, a chronic liver condition, at the age of 29. That condition eventually led to inoperable bile duct cancer. He is undergoing chemotherapy, which will not cure his disease but could prolong his life.

There will be an opening ceremony at 10 a.m. Saturday when the inspirational family is introduced in Community Park.