Hometown Heroes ‘Brave the Shave’ to Help Fight Childhood Cancer with St. Baldrick’s Foundation

Friday, May 17th, 2013

A SusanvilleStuff Feature
By Jeremy Couso

First some scary facts… more children are lost to cancer in the U.S. than any other disease, and before they turn 20, about 1 in 300 boys and 1 in 333 girls will be diagnosed with cancer.

Somewhere in the world a child is diagnosed with a form of cancer every 3 minutes.

In the 1950s almost all children diagnosed with cancer died, but because of research, today about 85% of kids with the most common type of cancers will live. For many other rarer types of childhood cancers progress has been limited, and for some kids there is still little hope for a cure.

These childhood cancers are different from adult cancers, tending to occur in other areas of the body, and responding differently to treatment. Also, childhood cancer is not just one disease but many major types, and countless subtypes, each requiring specific research to develop the best treatment for every child.

What is St. Baldrick’s Foundation?

St. Baldrick’s head-shaving events began as a challenge between businessmen and have grown from one event in the year 2000 to over 1,300 events last year, raising critical funds for childhood cancer research.

Events take place in pubs, restaurants, schools, churches, parks, malls, military bases, firehouses and any other place you can imagine.

These fundraisers come in all shapes and sizes with people shaving their heads in Hong Kong and Honolulu and everywhere in between all with one goal – to cure childhood cancer.

Here in the Susanville the head-shaving event will be held at the Diamond Mountain Casino & Hotel.

What does the Foundation do? Where does that money go?

The St. Baldrick’s Foundation is a volunteer-driven charity dedicated to raising money for life-saving childhood cancer research and funds more in childhood cancer grants than any organization except for the U.S. government.

Since the foundation’s first grants as an independent charity in 2005, St. Baldrick’s has funded more than $101 million to support the most brilliant childhood cancer research experts in the world and an army of St. Baldrick’s volunteers have made it possible to award $103 million in grants since 2005–more than $25 million in 2012 alone to help fight childhood cancers through research.

The foundation is guided by a Scientific Advisory Committee, comprised of leading experts in the childhood cancer community who help the Foundation set research funding priorities so that every dollar makes the greatest impact possible. Your contribution impacts children who are being treated at more than 215 children’s hospitals throughout the United States.

Head-Shaving Around the World

The St. Baldrick’s Foundation coordinates its signature head-shaving events worldwide, where volunteers get bald to stand in solidarity with kids with cancer and raise money to support life saving childhood cancer research.

Between 2000 to 2013, more than 298,000 shavees have shaved their heads at more than 6,800 St. Baldrick’s signature head-shaving events worldwide.

In 2012, more than 1,300 events were held and more than 56,000 volunteers shaved their heads – the most in St. Baldrick’s history.

Right here at home

Diamond Mountain Casino has a very impressive history of fundraising for both local victims of childhood cancers and to support research of the disease through various organizations. When casino employees learned of the work of the St. Baldrick’s foundation, the largest private funder of childhood cancer research, they knew it was something they wanted to support.

The event is being held in memory of local youth who were affected by childhood cancers; Michael Cochran, Zara Jereda, Anthony Edeyaoch, Kendall Ridgebear and Brittany McCalmon.

97 Susanville Heros Looking to Raise 10,000 Dollars

At the bottom of this post you will find 97 different people who are helping raise funds at tomorrow’s head-shaving event. Find someone you know, someone you like, and donate in their name. We’ve made it so when you click on someone’s name you will be taken straight to their donation page at St. Baldrick’s.

Your gift will give hope to infants, children, teens and young adults fighting childhood cancers. So when these 97 local heros ask for your support, they are really asking you to support these kids.

The event starts at 3:00p.m. Saturday, May 18th, at the Diamond Mountain Casino & Hotel 900 Skyline. You can call 888.899.2253 to donate, or you can follow these handy links to donate online.