Thank you for visiting my page! My name is Conlan, and I am 10 years old. I would like to tell you why I have made the commitment to growing out my hair and am shaving my head for St. Baldrick's. My reason is Nolan. He is my brother and he is a cancer survivor.
Two years ago, Nolan was diagnosed with cancer on my birthday. My mom had made a cake and we were supposed to celebrate after school that night. It was a day that was supposed to be happy, but it turned into one of the worst days my family has ever been through.
Over the next few months, my mom and dad spent most of their time in the hospital with my brother, which wasn't easy for anyone. Even though my aunt and my grandma were taking really good care of me, my two other brothers, Tristan and Kiernan, and my sister, Catherine Rose, we all missed Mom and Dad so much. We missed Nolan, too, and we were so scared for what he was going through. Cancer is really scary.
One of the days Nolan was able to come home really stuck with me. I will never forget it. My brother's hair was falling out, and Mom said we needed to shave it so he wouldn't be scared to see the clumps of hair on his pillow. Before we shaved Nolan's head though, my dad, my brothers, and I told him we would all shave our heads first, so he wouldn't be alone. That was another hard day. Nolan was only four years old, and he didn't understand why we were making him shave his hair off. He didn't know it was all going to be gone soon anyways. I remember we shaved our heads in Mom and Dad's bathroom, and when it came time to shave Nolan's, he cried and cried. So we all sat in the tub behind him, while Dad shaved Nolan's head, and we sang him his song that our Mom made up when he was a baby. And we all cried with him.
Since that day, I continued to shave my hair until Nolan was done with chemo. Once his hair started to grow back, I stopped shaving my head and I haven't cut my hair once. I decided I was going to grow it out to donate it to kids with cancer who need a wig. I saw how hard it was for Nolan to lose his hair, and I figured I could help other kids have hair by giving them mine.
Then, this March, my family and I went to a St. Baldrick's event in Norfolk. My dad, Kiernan, Catherine Rose and I were all so inspired that we wanted to shave our hair, but my mom made me wait. She said it would be worth it to wait for next year, since I only needed a few more inches until I could donate my hair. Mom and Dad also explained if I waited, I could create a team and raise money. I decided my goal would be to raise $100 per inch that I donate. Since I have to have at least 12 inches of hair, that means my goal is $1200, but I am hoping that with a team, we can raise a lot more than that!
St. Baldrick's raises money to support childhood cancer research. Without cancer research, my brother would not be here anymore. But I also know that there are so many kids that aren't here with us anymore. Nolan made a lot of friends while he was in the hospital, and I am so sad for the families who have lost their kids, because I can't imagine if I had lost my brother. This is why cancer research is so important! We have to raise money so that we can help fund the research and save the kids!
I hope you will please support me with a donation to save lives. I would also love it if you would consider joining my team! Cancer isn't something us kids should ever have to worry about, and maybe one day, with enough research, we won't have to...and we can just get back to eating our birthday cake.
Thank you!
Conlan
