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Bumper crop of locks raise thousands for Canadian Cancer Society

June 23, 2016   ·   0 Comments

By Brock Weir

Cheers went up from her classmates when hairstylists presented Georgia Barrington with a Ziploc bag full of her long tresses on Monday, but things didn’t stop there.

The Grade 6 student decided to take things a step further and asked for the hair dresser to fire up the shaver. She was joining the boys in going all the way, shaving her head in the third-annual Jakob’s Cause, which brought crowds at Lester B. Pearson Public School to their feet at their year-end assembly.

The initiative of fellow Grade 6 student Jakob Israel to raise money for the Canadian Cancer Society, it is now in its third year.

In the first year, Jakob went solo on stage as barbers from Yellow Orange Salon and Spa did away with his curls, but since that first outlining, the initiative has grown. This week, the team was 11 students strong who collectively raised $9,138 and counting for the fight against cancer.

“Three years ago when I asked my mom and dad what I could do to raise money for the Canadian Cancer Society, I never imagined Jakob’s Cause would become so big,” Jakob told the assembly. “This year, my team and I have raised over $9,000, bringing Jakob’s Cause’s three-year grand total to over $22,000, all benefiting the Canadian Cancer Society.

“I have a few people to thank and without them this day wouldn’t have been possible: the wonderful stylists who have volunteered their time this morning to cut and shave our heads: Esther Farsalis of James Dimitri in Aurora, Jessica and Lori from Becoming Hair Salon in Aurora, Brigette of Yellow Orange Salon in Aurora, and Bonnie and Brenda MacFarlane. Thank you all.

“I would also like to thank our courageous team: Georgia, Jacob, Anthony, Isobel, Elena, Charlie, Tucker, Lukas, Isaac and Sam. Yesterday, my little brother Henry joined the team by shaving his head too. [I’d also like to thank] amazing Mme (Wendy) Dicker and all of the people at LBP who have helped organize this really cool event, and of course, everyone who has donated over the last three years. Hopefully if we all work together, we can help people living with cancer one day find a cure.”

Although Georgia might have winced a time or two when the stylists went in for a close shave, she knew it was all for a good cause.

“Any girl can cut their hair, which I normally do during the year, so why not take it up a notch and shave it,” she said, adding there were two things going through her mind when the buzzes got closer: what will her hair feel like and what will she look like?

The consensus was clear: she was rocking the new look, but the feel, she said, will take some getting used to.

“I don’t actually care about my hair that much; I did it because it sounded like a good cause, I have never done this before, and it is one more thing to check off my to-do list.”

As she checked one item off her Grade 6 Bucket List, she was cheered on by her mother, Deanna Rose, and grandmother Carol.

“Knowing her, she always wants to do something a bit different and challenge herself,” said Deanna. “She had seen Jakob do it over the years and just thought, ‘I want to do it and if I am going to do it I want to do the same as Jakob and get out there.’ She asked her family for support and everyone was right behind her.”

         

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