Karen Whitehead
A Shropshire woman is having her head shaved by her barber friend who is undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer.
Karen Whitehead decided on the head shave as a show of support for her friend Lindsay who lost her hair due to the chemotherapy treatment.
The head shave will take place on Wednesday, June 28, and a Just Giving page has been set up to raise money for Breast Cancer UK. Karen initially set a fundraising target of £500 but in less than a week had passed £3,350.
Karen is managing director at KEW Accountants and Tax Specialists, based at the Business Development Centre on Stafford Park in Telford, and Lindsay is a barber working within the centre.
Karen said: “Lindsay is a wonderful woman and well loved, not only here in the Business Development Centre but across Telford, and she is bravely fighting breast cancer at the age of 39.
“The chemotherapy meant she lost her hair which knocked her confidence, and she now feels reluctant to go out because she worries that she is being looked at.
“I felt that I really wanted to do something positive to support her through this difficult time and having my head shaved seemed the most appropriate thing to do. It means that we can go out together, have a coffee, and at least she won’t feel like she is alone.
“Lindsay is a barber and will carry out the head shave on June 28. I want it to show my solidarity, not only with Lindsay but with all the other women who are going through this terrible ordeal.
“It will also provide the opportunity to raise as much money as we can for Breast Cancer UK – an amazing charity which is doing so much to help rid us of this terrible disease. I had a fundraising target of £500 when I set up the just giving page but inside a week an amazing total of £3,350 had been raised.
“My thanks to all those who have donated, it really is much-appreciated and a little overwhelming to be honest. The page is still open and, even though we have already passed expectations, it would be nice to raise as much as we can for this most worthy of causes.”
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in the UK with more than 55,000 women and 390 men diagnosed with the disease each year – yet around a third of these cases are preventable. Funding is vital for Breast Cancer UK to continue its important work.
To donate to Karen’s head shave, visit the just giving page at https://www.justgiving.com/page/karen-whitehead-1686814342491
