Students, staff and community members will gather in the small auditorium on March 13 for St. Baldrick’s Day, an international annual charitable event to promote awareness of childhood cancer, donate hair for wigs and raise money for cancer research.
The St. Baldrick’s Foundation, an organization dedicated to fighting childhood cancer, has been hosting fundraising events since 2000. These events centered on the shaving of people’s heads, a tradition started by three reinsurance executives and friends in New York City: Tim Kenny, John Bender and Enda McDonnell.
“It feels good to know I’m making a difference in people’s lives. I feel like I’m making a positive change,” said senior Quinn Malone, the St. Baldrick’s community event organizer for the high school.
As community event organizer, Malone is responsible for networking with other schools, organizing the shave, fundraising and encouraging others to shave their heads.
Adam Holbrook (’24), a sophomore at Wake Forest University, has participated in St. Baldrick’s since he was in second grade. “I’m super proud to be a part of St. Baldrick’s. It’s always been a part of who I am,” he said.
“People know me as the guy who gets the buzz cut every year,” Holbrook said.
Sophomore Bram Turturici will participate for a fourth year. “It’s been fun. I feel good for doing something right,” he said. “It’s important for those that are fortunate enough to make a difference to do what little they can to help and if that means shaving my head, then of course I’ll do that.”
Local barber Georgios Toumpoulas will serve as barber for the St. Baldrick’s event at the high school for a second year. “We’re sharing love, confidence and positive energy,” he said. “I like the energy. I like the smiling people. I’m looking forward to seeing these kinds of people again. I really like the whole vibe.”
Most of the funds raised by the St. Baldrick’s Foundation in Ohio go to the Children’s Oncology Group, the world’s largest organization dedicated solely to childhood and adolescent cancer. According to information provided by St. Baldrick’s peer-to-peer fundraising specialist Stephanie Carrell, the COG achieved a breakthrough in the area of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in 2024.
“This has been reported as one of the largest discoveries in decades, and children are currently receiving lifesaving care as a result of this achievement, which was largely funded by St. Baldrick’s,” Carrell said.
Institutions that receive funding from the St. Baldrick’s Foundation and research childhood cancer include Case Western Reserve University, University Hospitals of Cleveland and the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine.
Holbrook said that research into childhood cancer is invaluable. “Cancer is such a terrible disease and affects so many people. It’s especially terrible that it can happen to children,” he said.
Malone said the money raised is used primarily to fund studies, labs and research, and the shorn locks can help people who lose their hair during cancer treatment. “You shave your head, and the hair can be used by somebody if they’re bald. Childhood cancer is sometimes overlooked. It [St. Baldrick’s] also helps raise awareness and helps other people make a change,” he said.
“Supporting these kids is a huge thing to do,” Toumpoulas said. “These people are blessed and special in life.”
Holbrook said his effort is personally significant. “Many people I know closely have died of cancer. I want to fight as much as I can and help fund the people who are doing their best to fight cancer,” he said.
Malone said going bald isn’t as bad as many people think. “It’s going to grow back. A lot of people will find a buzz cut is fun. It’s easier to maintain. It brings out the jawline a little bit. People get too attached to their hair,” he said.
Toumpoulas also said that hair will grow back. “At the end of the day, it’s just hair,” he said.
Said Turturici, “I don’t think there’s anything to be afraid of. Your hair will grow back and if the money you raise saves a kid’s life, then it’s definitely worth it.”
