THUNDER BAY - For Catherine Tauro, who has seen friends and family lose the battle with cancer, and who works with people still fighting that battle every day, facing down an electric clipper was nothing to be scared about.
“This is my support to them, showing them that being without hair is not the end of the world and good for you for the fight and keep on going,” she said.
On Saturday, Tauro was one of more than 20 people who shaved their heads during the 21st annual Cops for Cancer fundraiser.
The annual fundraiser raises more than $20,000 a year for Canadian Cancer Society Northwest, which is used primarily to support children fighting the disease.
“Cops for cancer is a really great event because it supports children with pediatric cancers,” said Maria Cabral, Regional Manager of Canadian Cancer Society Northwest. “That is really important for us because in Thunder Bay, a lot of our children are going to Toronto for treatment if they are faced with cancer and the Canadian cancer society helps them out in terms of travel.”
“We know that when you are faced with a cancer diagnosis in your family, especially when it’s a child, it is very trying and parents need to be there to support their children,” Cabral continued.
Cops for Cancer was first started by an Edmonton police officer in 1994 and has since grown to a nation-wide fundraiser. The Thunder Bay Police Association has been involved with the annual event for the last 21 years and Cops for Cancer chair, Greg Stephenson, said it is an important cause to support because the services it funds are so crucial.
“We support it whole heartedly,” he said. “For us it’s giving back to the community and showing that we care and want to help out.”
Cabral added that the event is so popular because anyone can come out and participate and it’s become a bit of a tradition for some.
“Sometimes it becomes a family tradition,” she said. “It ranges in terms of young and old and women and children and men.”
And according to Stephenson, it’s much more than just a free haircut.
“It’s a way to show support for cancer survivors and for people we’ve lost in the past,” he said. “The symbol of course is when you have radiation or chemo, you lose your hair, so this is why we do it, to show solidarity in that fact.”
Thunder Bay Police Service const. Matt Sombrutski and his three-year-old son, Oliver, both shaved their heads and Sombrutski said he was really happy his son wanted to be involved.
“It’s a worthy cause,” he said. “Unfortunately, cancer has affected everybody. This is something everybody can be a part of it. It doesn’t take a whole lot of effort to shave your head, so there’s no real reason not to do it.”
But even if you are afraid to face the clippers, Tauro said there are still many other ways to help out those who continue to fight.
“There are volunteer programs at the Cancer Centre for people needing to do little things like handing out tea and toast to people undergoing chemotherapy,” she said. “If you are brave and want a new haircut for the summer season, this is the way to go.”
