Health & Fitness
"Giving Back Committee" inspires Sunny Hill students to shed their hair for cancer
Students at Sunny Hill Elementary take the spirit of giving so literally they were even willing to cut their hair to help make wigs for children with cancer.
You always have something to give. This was the mission of the Giving Back Committee created at Sunny Hill Elementary School in Barrington 220 last fall. Principal Irma Bates supported the idea and encouraged all the efforts of the committee. Thirty-two students believed that they could make a difference and joined this club. The culminating event took place May 15 to 30 last spring. During this time, each participant visited a hair salon to have a minimum of 8-inches of hair carefully trimmed for donation to Pantene Beautiful Lengths. This is one of the few organizations that offers wigs made of real hair to cancer survivors free of charge.
While their hair was growing, the student committee members met weekly to discuss ways to give back to the community. They found that no matter their background or socio-economic status, they were able to give their time and unique talents to make a difference in the local area. Students decided to name this group the “Giving Back Committee” to highlight their mission of giving back to others, and affectionately called it the “GBC.”
Each participant has his/her own story to tell pertaining to his/her motivation for involvement. Some had family members who experienced hair loss due to illness, while others are cancer survivors themselves. The group suffered a loss during the year, and the family continued to support the efforts of the GBC in their own way. In addition to student participants, five parents and one teacher found reasons to contribute their locks of hair to this worthy cause. In total, the club donated more than 30 feet of hair, weighing over 5 pounds.
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Dr. Tom Leonard, superintendent of Barrington 220, attended an all-school assembly and presented each participant with a letter of thanks from Pantene Beautiful Lengths. Principal Bates pinned a corsage or boutonniere on each participant to honor his/her efforts. The students’ hope is their example of “giving back” will inspire a desire in others to find their own personal way to help someone in need.
Special thanks goes out to the administration of Barrington 220 for supporting this effort and encouraging a public service mentality in interested students; Lu Lu's Wiggin' Out for bringing wigs to a meeting so participants could learn about the wig process; and Boni Roberts for her labor of love in creating the corsages and boutonnieres for the recognition assembly at Sunny Hill.
