Why am I shaving my head, and why should you care?

There are PLENTY of facts and statistics available on this website regarding the incredible work done by St. Baldrick's but here is my story (buckle up, I love story telling & I'm pretty decent at it if I say so myself):

I first met Carrie, Jackson's mom, at our local library story time. I immediately fell in love with her Rockstar vibes and kind heart. Jackson and my daughter Lenna were a couple of years apart in age. I loved hearing about why Carrie shaved her head and Jackson, being a huge hearted kid, wanted to join his mom in doing a good deed in honor of kids with cancer.

Carrie would say "I shave my head to raise funds and awareness. I can't imagine losing one of my children to cancer." Then the unimaginable happened. Less than 2 weeks after giving another family their son, via surrogacy, Carrie lost her own son to Osteosarcoma.

This loss blindsided the Mike, Carrie & 3 year old Ivan, their friends & our community. I watched this powerhouse of a mama grieve and fight simultaneously. She set out to make Jackson a Legend (one of his bucket list items) & try to make something beautiful out of something so traumatic. Having already been involved with St. Baldrick's for years, she started her own event.

While I wasn't ready to shave at first, I wanted to help in other ways so I volunteered my time through my own strength - makeup artistry. I headed up a team of makeup artists, applying makeup to the shavees before they shaved so that they could feel beautiful, even bald.

Watching the beauty that came from not only holding space for all these courageous humans, but hearing their WHY while I did their makeup made me see how impactful shaving can be both from a fundraising standpoint & also how the community sees the awareness necessary. Carrie always told me she would never MAKE ME shave but that she would LOVE me to shave alongside her someday. After 4 years of participating through makeup, I realized I was ready to shave myself!

At a Christmas Concert in 2023, the band called for people to come to the stage to shave their heads and raise funds for Kids Cancer. I made eye contact with my sister and with glistening eyes, she knew too. I was ready to run up on stage and shave right then but the thought of not supporting my friend in such a monumental occasion held me back. In early 2024, I joined Team Jackson with EVERY intention of shaving my head.

In my fundraising, my fundraising cohorts thought that giving people a voice regarding my shave could increase my donations. Every $10 donation equaled 1 vote! The week leading up to the event the votes were neck and neck PLUS my donations were getting very close to my $2,000 goal. A sudden snow storm threw a huge wrench in the event and pushed it to a weekday. The show went on and while I had every intention of leaving that event freezing my butt off, bald headed, I also am a woman of my word. In the end, the votes and funds for SAVE (saving my hair) were the victor. I raised over $2,100 for Team Jackson's Hero Fund, was awarded a BIG OLE medal, & donated 13" of hair at the event - but I left feeling a little defeated.

You see, raising fundraising and raising awareness are HUGE and I was so proud of the work I put in raising funds but I WANTED to be bald for SO MANY reasons:
• Raising Funds to help cancer treatments being easier on kids' bodies.
• Raising Awareness of how many families are affected by childhood cancer & everything, including lives lost, that come along with it.
• I wanted to show my girls that you can be beautiful WITHOUT your hair both physically but also because being a good human matters more than hair.
• I wanted to show women everywhere that being bald can be empowering and that confidence can be built in other ways besides our physical appearance.
• AND frankly, I wanted to feel like a BAD ASS!

This year, I'm dead set on leaving bald and freezing my butt off. This year, Im

donating over 18" of hair! THIS YEAR, I also happen to be a Cosmetology Student which adds an additional level to the shock of being a bald woman in an industry focused on vanity and hair. I'm mentally prepared for the days I don't know what to do with my hair or feel grumpy because my long locks are gone. I'm prepared for the awful grow out process. More than anything else, I'm honored to be able to raise funds & awareness benefiting what St. Baldrick's stands for. I'm excited to share my story, Carrie's story, & Jackson's story with anyone and everyone who looks my way or even dares to...

ASK ME WHY I'M BALD!

If you read this far, I hope you were entertained, maybe laughed and bare minimum I put it in your heart to support me and all the things this action and event stand for. Thank you