Locals Losing Locks To Raise Funds For Cancer Research

March 10, 2010 by Josh Morgan

Bald is beautiful some might say, but, in this particular instance, bald is certainly charitable.
A few Cheshire residents will be participating in the 2010 St. Baldrick’s Fundraiser to benefit pediatric cancer research. Started 10 years ago by a group of colleagues in a New York City office around a St. Patrick’s Day party, St. Baldrick’s has grown into a worldwide annual event. The premise of the event is to raise money for childhood cancer research where participants shave their heads bald, mimicking what many children face after receiving cancer treatments, to encourage donations from friends, family, and peers.
“I think the event is just great,” explained Cheshire resident Dan Ford, director of Alderson Funeral Homes. “There was no hesitation on my part to do it, but I wanted a whole team effort and got some of my co-workers involved.”
Ford, who participated last year, recruited his funeral home counterparts Paul Belval and Bill Moriarty to join in the cause. He recounted that, once he mentioned the idea, and even though they recalled how he looked last March after the 2009 event, “they jumped at the opportunity” to participate. The three men set a fundraising goal of $1,000 and, at first, Ford thought it was too lofty a goal. But, with $800 already raised and almost two weeks until the March 15 shaving, he is feeling confident.
“I only raised like $400 last year and, this year, we are really hoping to crush our goals,” Ford said. “We had a good goal in mind and now we’re hoping to surpass that.”
Ford, who normally wears his hair relatively short, said people would still be able to notice a difference after the head shaving. Like Ford, Belval keeps his hair neatly trimmed, but Moriarty, Ford joked, has “baby boy curls” and would be the most affected out of the group.
“Still, we’re really excited to be doing this as a team,” Ford said. “It’s a great time, but you can’t lose sight of why we’re doing this.”
The sight of three bald pallbearers might alarm some people when they go to one of the Alderson Funeral Homes but, Ford said, despite the possibility that people might being “taken aback,” he still wants to participate.
“I’m sure people will rag on us and families will be taken aback when they come in and see we don’t have any hair,” Ford said, “but once we tell them what we did and why we did it, they’ll think it’s great.”
Fellow Cheshire resident Joseph Nadeau is participating in a St. Baldrick’s event organized by one of the captains at the Waterbury Fire Department, whose nephew has cancer. This is Nadeau’s first time participating, and he admits he doesn’t quite know what to expect, but is excited to take part in a great cause. He said that, thus far, the response has been “overwhelming” and the department has already recruited 50 people to get their heads shaved.
“It really feels great,” Nadeau said about participating. “We set a team goal of $5,000 and have already raised over $12,000.”
Nadeau’s hair isn’t exactly flowing, he joked, as he keeps it trimmed under normal circumstances. However, after agreeing to participate with St. Baldrick’s in January, he hasn’t had a haircut since. Also, as a side challenge, Nadeau said if he reaches his personal goal of raising $1,000, he would also shave off his mustache, something he has never done before.
“I will shave my mustache and no one has ever seen me without it. It’ll be history-making,” he joked. “I’ve grown my hair out and it’s driving me crazy—I keep getting bed head—but I wanted it to be a dramatic difference.”
Nadeau stated that, while people joke about the event and it’s done in good fun, its message cannot be lost. Despite their cancer, some of these kids keep great attitudes, which he said was inspirational.
“It’s sad because kids always seem to be the innocent victims. I see it with my work at the fire department and now with cancer,” Nadeau said. “Even though they are young, their attitudes are great. It should be a model for us adults.”
For more information, including before and after photos, visit the Web at www.stbaldricks.org. To make a donation, enter the participant’s name into the search box on the home page.