As I file through the gymnasium doors after school on March 19th, I find the gym filled with noise, laughter, and booming Y2K music uncharacteristic of any school event save the occasional rally. The space, typically an empty passageway to the gravel lot by 4:00 pm, has been repurposed to hold an audience of dozens of folding chairs, facing off with a line of seven barber-style chairs each complete with a pair of electric razors, clippers, and scissors. Tables scattered around the perimeter boast a bake sale, face/head painting, Jenga, temporary tattoos, shavee sign-ups, and more. What I have stumbled upon is St. Baldrick’s, the annual head-shaving, fun-and-fund-raising event that both builds awareness and raises money to support research for children’s cancer.
Although I’d heard the announcements for St. Baldrick’s in previous years, I had never actually been until this March of my junior year, due to the misconception that St. Baldrick’s was a Panther Pride-only organization. However, I quickly realized this event was open to everyone, as I played a few rounds of Jenga with a group of students from 6th through 12th grades.
Before the main event began, the crowd gathered around the shavee’s chairs to hear a speech from event organizers, including science teacher Mr. O’Block. “St. Baldrick’s is important to all kids,” said O’Block, “if you look at the statistics, if you have a student population of 2000… seven of those students should receive a cancer diagnosis sometime between zero and nineteen years old.” In the eight years that BHS has participated in St. Baldrick’s, says O’Block, “we have not had a single year where there hasn’t been a Boulder High student battling cancer.”
The event, which is worldwide, raises millions upon millions of dollars each year to fund childhood cancer research. As of this publication, we have currently raised $45,800 through our participation. As fundraising continues until 2026, we both hope to and need to see that number grow. Why? Mr. O’Block explains that “pharmaceutical companies, who need to make a profit… are going to focus on adults” with cancer, as the adult demographic makes up a larger percent of cancer diagnoses. “But how you treat cancer… in children’s bodies is different from adults. And do, childhood cancer is very inconsistently funded.” Every penny raised through St. Baldrick’s goes to funding cancer treatments, research, and developing healthier treatments for children that can improve quality of life after beating the disease.
Mr. O’Block promises that we at Boulder High are going to “keep doing this until doctors are no longer telling families ‘we’re out of options’,” until no child has to hear the words “say your final goodbyes.”
The truth is that if we wait until a friend or a peer or family member is battling cancer, it will be too late to begin fundraising for thousands of kids worldwide. We must act now. “The best time to plant a tree,” explains Mr. O’Block, “is forty years ago. And the second best time is now.”
A ray of light in the midst of all the heaviness, it is also a primary goal of St. Baldrick’s to be fun. It is a celebration of the progress we make daily with cancer research, of the impact we can have in battling this disease when we come together. The centerpiece of BHS’s St. Baldrick’s is the legendary head-shaving, in which volunteers – this year, including two middle school girls from Manhattan Middle School – shave their heads to show support for the cause and for those battling childhood cancer worldwide. “It’s us coming together as a community to support… our kids,” says Mr. O’Block, “With a disease like cancer, it’s hard to feel like you can do anything about it. And so [St. Baldrick’s] is something that’s given me a little direction and purpose around that… a way that you can kind of fight a little bit.”
If you likewise yourself looking for ways to expand your impact, please visit www.stbaldricks.org for more information. By searching “Boulder High School” on the website, you can raise money for this year’s fund, which will be open until December. And, if you are a senior and find yourself going off to college or the workforce next year, inquire as to whether your school/job participates in St. Baldrick’s. If not, you can start your own project easily through the foundation’s website. After all, St. Baldrick’s at BHS is student-founded and student-run. And non-financially, the most important thing you can do to fight cancer is show up. Show up for your friends, peers, children, families, and classmates, and come to St. Baldrick’s next year.
