BELLEVILLE, Ill. — Before Saturday, 9-year-old Chava Piepgrass of Belleville, Illinois, had only gotten a hair cut once. Her dark hair reached all the way down to her waist, but all that changed this weekend, and for a good cause.
Chava and about 100 others took part in St. Baldrick's virtual head-shaving event for Childhood Cancer Awareness month.
According to St. Baldrick's, a child is diagnosed with cancer every two minutes worldwide, which Chava knows all too well. She's lost two friends to childhood cancer, which motivated her to do something about it.
"I refuse to accept this reality," she said on her donation page, "so I’ve decided to fundraise for lifesaving research to find cures and better treatments for kids."
On Saturday, she had the second haircut of her life, buzzing off her long locks for the charity. But she wasn't the only one in her family to put the clippers to good use.
Chava's dad agreed to shave his head if she reached $4,000 in donations, and her younger sister Gracey said she would join in if Chava raised $5,000. Chava reached both marks by Saturday, so all three went bald for the good cause.
“I’m happy that something as easy as giving up my hair can help give someone back their life in the future,” Chava said.
As of Monday, Chava's page has raised more than $5,600 for St. Baldrick's.
That money will be used to advance research to find a cure for all types of childhood cancer. The charity has raised more than $22 million so far in 2020.
You can donate to Chava's campaign here.
