Having grown her hair for five years, Tara Pinch has shaved her head for cancer research.
Pinch had her long locks shorn on August 27 after a women’s cycling team that was fundraising for cancer research raised more than $5,000.
The Tour de Friends (qathet) team of four rode in the 100-kilometre Tour de Victoria on August 16 in support of the BC Cancer Foundation. The team, consisting of Kimberley Leahy, Mary Payne, Tara Schmunk and Sarah Bonsor had set a goal of $5,000. Pinch said if the team achieved its goal, she would donate her hair to cancer survivors.
Leahy said the fundraising goal came down to the wire, right down to the last minute, the night before the ride.
“The donations were rolling in and we did surpass our $5,000 goal,” said Leahy. “We ended up raising over $5,600 in the end. So we're just so thankful to everybody who donated.”
Pinch said according to the Canadian Cancer Society, two in five Canadians are expected to be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetimes. Approximately one in four Canadians is expected to die of the disease, she added.
Pinch has personal reasons for cutting her hair for cancer research. She said she lost her grandfather, Edwin Lockwood, to cancer in 2009.
“I was lucky enough to be with him in his last days,” said Pinch. “Cancer reduced his body to a shell of his former self, but his spirit was strong until the end.”
Pinch said her stepmother, Debbie Galinski, was diagnosed with colorectal cancer in 2017.
“With the assistance of an incredibly skilled surgeon, and our local oncology team, today she is in complete remission,” said Pinch.
Finally, her friend since middle school, Charlene Anderson, lost her 20-year battle with brain cancer last summer.
“She leaves behind a loving husband, two beautiful teenaged children, and many adoring family members and friends,” said Pinch.
Pinch added that she works as relief for the oncology booking clerk at qathet General Hospital, and sees the cancer warriors coming in to get their treatment.
“You’d think it would be a sad place, but it’s not; it’s filled with love and optimism,” said Pinch. “Let’s face it, I have a lot of hair – too much for one person. If you can believe it, this is only five years of growth. There’s someone out there, or maybe several someones, who have more use for it than I do.”
Leahy said the team went on the fundraising bike ride in Victoria and it was amazing.
“It did pour rain at the beginning, but after that, the skies cleared up and we finished in glorious sunshine,” said Leahy. “Our group of four did the 100-kilometre route, and it really was a tour de Victoria. I saw parts of Victoria I've never seen before.
“It was very hilly. It had a 1,400-metre elevation gain, which is the most we've ever done as a group, so that was a bit of a challenge. But just keeping in the back of our minds that this is for a great cause made us complete it.”
Leahy said she and another team member are nurses and work part-time in the oncology department at the hospital.
“It's just a cause very close to our hearts,” said Leahy. “I've been a chemo nurse for 26 years now, and cancer has touched many, many people in my life. Tara [Schmunk] lost her husband just over a year ago to cancer, and it just has affected so many people we know and care about.
“We just want to keep bringing those dollars in to help support research, so that the treatments just continue to improve.”
Pinch said she was looking for the right cause at the right time.
“My lovely friend Kim was raising money for cancer, and that aligned with where my heart was as well, and I decided that was the reason to cut my hair.”
After her haircut, Pinch said it literally lifted a weight off her shoulders.
“The hair was getting heavy,” she added. “I’m a runner and it is going to be pretty light out there without my hair dragging behind.”
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