I've had some sort of beard ever since I left active duty service in the Marine Corps back in 2007. Over the last few years, I've really let it grow out to the glorious state you see it in today. I love my beard, and I love being able to grow a good one, but every once in a while I think about starting over.
I recently learned about the St. Baldrick's Foundation and decided it was a perfect fit for me. I mean come on, if I'm going to shave this beard off I want it to benefit a good cause, right? Even though St. Baldrick's focuses on kids cancer research, I'm doing this in memory of my Grandma, Lorita, who passed away 12/1/2017 due to complications stemming from lung cancer. She was one of the toughest ladies I've known and I miss her very much. There's a picture of her at the bottom from February 2017, before we knew about her cancer.
Some info about St. Baldrick's:
72% of each dollar goes to research, 25% to fundraising, 3% to admin.
The name "St. Baldrick's" is a combination of the words "bald" and "St. Patrick's," since the first event was held in 2000 on March 17, which is St. Patrick's Day, in New York City.
History of the foundation: https://www.stbaldricks.org/history