Just before they pack up on Tuesday and head off to their next assignment in Ste. Marie, Que., a handful of the members of the local Katimavik crew will be feeling a little light-headed come Monday, thanks to a scheduled charity head shave.
Called the Locks for Hope, it aims to bring in some cash donations for the Canadian Cancer Society. At the same time, some of the lopped locks will be made into wigs for kids who have lost hair due to chemotherapy.
Lyndi Woo, current project leader, said she wanted to do something special before the group moves on to its next assignment. A head shave is something she’s never done before but it has always been in the back of her mind, she said.
“One of the volunteers that was part of my group last year, she had gone through the Katimavik year and so it re-inspired me.”
Woo concedes that she is probably due for a trip to the stylist anyway. “It’s probably a few inches past my shoulders.”
When she proposed the idea to her team, they ran with it. The result will be the lunchtime event at the St. Albert Senior Citizens’ Club with an electric clipper service from local studios Extreme Creations and Hair by Design. Woo will be joined by four other group members. Their goal is to raise $6,000.
The event goes from noon to 1:30 p.m. on Monday at the seniors’ club. If you can’t make it down but still want to show your support, please visit convio.cancer.ca/goto/katimaviklocksforhope. Cheques to the Canadian Cancer Society can be mailed or dropped off at the local group’s home base at 63 Lester Cr.
This is third year for Katimavik in St. Albert. They’ve been helping out at places like the St. Albert Food Bank, the Community Information and Volunteer Centre, and various schools here and in the Sturgeon area. Since 1977, Katimavik has enabled nearly 28,000 Canadians to be involved in more than 2,000 communities throughout the country.
Visit www.katimavik.org for more information.
Going the extra mile for Uganda
There’s a group of kids in Africa that are very close to Bruce Childs’ heart. He recently spent a month with the Ainembabazi Needy Children’s Project, an organization that helps orphans with educational assistance.
The school’s struggle — no windows or doors, no running water — but there is one thing that gives the students motivation and exercise at the same time: soccer. Even playing with bare feet on a cow pie-dotted field doesn’t deter these sports enthusiasts.
Childs just wants to help give them some equipment to help them to look the part. He already brought them some new balls to replace the decrepit one they were using and even taught them some rules and drills.
“As I watched them chasing the brand new shiny balls all over the field, I vowed to myself that when I got back to Canada I was going to do everything I could to get some equipment and uniforms for these guys.” He wants to collect soccer shoes, shin pads, socks or shorts of all sizes. “I know a bunch of lads that would really appreciate them.”
For more information or to make a donation, please call 780-459-6815.
