Wayne Masse doesn't really look pretty in pink.

But he doesn't care. That's not the goal. The goal, which prompts him and other members of the Pink Angels Posse to outfit themselves with wings, angel gowns, haloes and fuzzy pink slippers, is to help raise money for breast cancer research.

And the group has been immensely successful in that venture. Since 2005, working as the cheering section for about 60 members of The Pink Angels walking group, they have helped to raise more than $1 million. They will be on their way to their second million on July 24 when the 2009 Boston Breast Cancer 3-Day walk begins.

For Masse, as for virtually all the participants, it is a labor of love. His wife, Marcia Masse, is an 11-year breast cancer survivor. When his wife joined the Pink Angels in 2005, Wayne was the first to sign up for the posse, which now also includes Will Savard of Methuen. Since then, Masse has been wearing the pink angel outfit that team captain Joanne Seneta made for him.

"I remember what she went through with treatment and surgeries. I don't want others to have to go through what she went through," he said.

The Masses also hold an annual yard sale in the Riverside section of Haverhill, which took in more than $1,000 this year.

Breast cancer is a scourge, taking far too many women, and even a few men, in the prime of life, before their families are grown. But the number of survivors who do the walk every year and the resulting money that pours into research is proof that if there is a way to beat it, it will come from the dedication, tenacity and spirit of people like Wayne and Marcia Masse.

Pink outfits or not, they are all angels.