A woman who set out to raise money her sister who had been diagnosed with stage four Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 1996 not only surpassed her goal, but shaved her head for the cause. Emily Larkin set a goal to raise $3000 by March 29 to fund the treatment and research at Riley Hospital for Children for her sister, Christina Pugh, but over the course of just more than a week Larkin has raised nearly $6000 – twice the amount she had set her sights on!
Larkin said she did not expect to raise so much money so quickly, and they’re still going to be taking donations.
“So we were very surprised by that, and so we’re still taking donations and we’re actually getting ready to hit $6000. So it’s been awesome. We’re gonna stop taking donations March 1 and we’re just advertising and seeing how far we can go!” said Larkin.
Larkin said her sister had a blast chopping it all off, and the group even shaved her hair into a mohawk before spray-painting it maroon and white, exciting the crowd into cheers. Larkin originally shaved Pugh’s head after her diagnosis, so her sister was more than happy to return the favor.
Pugh and other family members participated in shaving Larkin’s head at a varsity basketball game after the goal had been hit in just eight days. Larkin said that while it is a different experience, having a shaved head does have its conveniences; she does, however, plan to grow her hair back out.
“It’s interesting; it’s a pretty liberating feeling, but I also feel somewhat naked,” Larkin explained. “I can get ready super-fast in the morning, which I cannot believe how much time I spent actually doing my hair, so that part is wonderful. And I actually met some girls that actually have their head shaved this weekend; she said she shaved hers six years ago for a friend that had breast cancer and she said she’s never grown it back out because she just didn’t realize how much time that she had spent on her hair and I completely understand that,” Larkin said.
Larkin said donations will be accepted until March 1. To donate, visit http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/emilylarkin/emilylarkinsfundraisingpage.
