It's Julia Hayden's birthday today.
The Immaculate Conception School student turned eight.
And, like most other children her age, she's likely going to get a lot of presents. But, unlike other eight year olds, she's also giving a present — two, to be exact.
At her school this afternoon, she had her hair cut for the first time. She is donating that hair to make wigs for cancer patients. But, even more so, she raised $1,292 for the Canadian Cancer Society.
She said sometimes, people don't feel special when they don't have hair.
“I want to help them feel special again,” she told her classmates, who gathered in the gymnasium to watch as Roxanne Monette-Lavalle, from Hair That “Rox,” snipped the birthday girl's hair.
Cathy Keanie-Burns, community manager for the Canadian Cancer Society's Sudbury chapter, said Julia and other children who donate their hair to make wigs for cancer patients are an inspiration to her and many others.
“You are a hero to the cancer patients who lose their hair,” she said.
Julia's haircut kicked off the school's fundraising endeavours for the Canadian Cancer Society's Relay for Life. On May 6, the students will participate in their own relay with the goal or raising $2,400.
The Relay for Life for the rest of Sudbury takes place June 17 from 6 a.m. to midnight at Laurentian University.
For more information, phone 705-670-1234 or email [email protected].
