Shaving heads to support childhood cancer research

It’s a shocking statistic: according to the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, which funds children’s cancer research, every three minutes, a child is diagnosed with cancer. One in five of those children will not survive and of those who do survive, many will suffer long-term effects from treatments that are too harsh for their still-developing young bodies.

Here’s how you can help.

Saturday from 1-5 p.m., Carolina Ale House in the Vista will host a head-shaving event in support of St. Baldrick’s. It’s the 10th anniversary of Columbia’s first St. Baldrick’s head-shaving event, and organizers have set a lofty goal of $100,000.

So far, more than 200 community members have registered to have their heads shaved. Show your support for their effort by contributing to St. Baldrick’s Foundation. Information is below.

During the month of March, 43,000 people will have their heads shaved for St. Baldrick’s at 640 events held throughout the country.

The first St. Baldrick’s event was held in 2000 and raised $104,000. Since then, the St. Baldrick’s Foundation has raised more than $178 million in grants for cancer treatment research in 26 countries. Each grant application is reviewed by a team of 180 pediatric oncology experts before being considered for approval. The money is important: less than 4 percent of the National Cancer Institute’s budget is solely dedicated to childhood cancer research.

For more information about the event, visit stbaldricks.org; to donate by phone, call (888) 899-2253 and reference event 15.

Carolina Ale House is located at 708 Lady St.

Katie McElveen, Special to The State

This story was originally published March 25, 2016 at 7:03 AM.