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On March 26, the Saint Xavier Council (SXC) plans to hold the Saint Baldrick’s fundraiser in Saint Xavier University’s Shannon Center from 3-8 pm.
The event is open to anyone who would like to partake in shaving their head, and anyone who is interested in observing such an event.
The proceeds of this event will go to a young boy, Henry Keller, and his family. This family will also be in attendance, telling their story as one of the activities planned for the evening.
In an interview with The Xavierite via email, Annie Costello expresses some ideas towards Saint Baldrick’s and the goals of the fundraiser. Costello is the Lead Organizer for the event at SXU, and will be shaving her head that day for the cause.
“The main goal of Saint Baldrick’s is to raise funds for childhood cancer research. Participants shave their heads to raise awareness, as well as raise money for [this] research,” said Costello.
The reason Costello brought Saint Baldrick’s to SXU includes a personal story and experience.
Since she’s been in high school, she has wanted to shave her head and raise money for the cause. For many years, she found it difficult to find a place where the event was actually held so she thought it would be a great idea to hold it at SXU. When she found out she could choose an event to hold, she started to plan immediately.
“Right away I jumped on that idea, and here I am today going through with my goal of starting my own event. This is the first year it is being held at Saint Xavier. I really wanted to shave my head someday because I was very sick in high school and was very close to having cancer, but the doctors caught it before it was cancerous. It is a scary feeling, and I want to be able to support children and young adults who did have to go through the treatments and have lost their hair,” said Costello.
Any student or community member interested in participating in the shave for Saint Baldrick’s have a few steps to complete before actually taking part. Costello goes through these steps and offers her phone number for anyone with any questions in regards to the sign-up process or the event.
People interested in participating can go on stbaldricks.org and search ‘Saint Xavier University’. There is a blue button at the top of the page that says ‘Join Us’. There will be an option of being a shavee or volunteer.
“If there are any questions or confusion they can contact me [Costello] at 708-256-0295. In order to have their head shaved, the shavees do have to raise money. All of the money raised is going to childhood cancer research,” said Costello.
Currently, there is a pretty good amount of people participating in the shave for Saint Baldrick’s but it wouldn’t be a bad thing to have more. If a head shave is not of interest, all students and faculty are welcomed and encouraged to come out and attend the event.
“We have 28 shavees (people shaving their heads). That is not just students, but community member and faculty/staff from SXU,” Costello said. However, the unumber of people shaving their heads is not necessarily limited to the 28 who have signed up already. Walk-ins are welcome.
“People are welcome to come the day of the event and sign up to shave their head too, so this number may increase the day of the event,” Costello said. Costello also mentioned the excellent turnout that the event is expected to draw and the community involvement that has made it possible.
“We have over 25 people volunteering to help out at the event, and 100+ students and community members expected to attend,” said Costello. The day of the event will include a wide variety of entertainment, raffles, and the Keller family speaking to those in attendance. There is sure to be something for everyone.
“For anyone attending the event, there will be food and refreshments, music, a photo booth, and raffle baskets (tickets are $1 – 1 ticket or $5 – 6 tickets). Most importantly, the young boy we are honoring, Henry Keller, and his family will be telling their story at the event around 5:30 p.m.,” said Costello.
Costello believes these activities and other factors will make the night a great success. The hard work put in by the SXC will definitely show, which is something Costello is looking forward to.
“I am looking forward to seeing all [of my], and SXC’s hard work pay off. I really look forward to the student participation in this event because it is very different than any other event at SXU,” said Costello.
Saint Baldrick’s at SXU has already raised a lot of money for the cause, and it is still climbing. It is great to see the student body supporting this organization and helping these children. On a final note, Costello speaks of the great support they have received.
“Our event had a goal of $5,000 and two weeks ago we reached that goal,” Costello said. That goal has been well-exceeded at this point, marking a huge success for the event and for those inolved.
“Not only did we reach it, but as of today, we are over $8,800,” said Costello.
Julie Gardner
News Editor
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