BonnerSprings.com

A Bonner Springs resident lost her hair last Thursday afternoon.

But it wasn’t for any medical reason she personally was suffering from. Cathy Jennings, a quality assurance manager with Kansas City Cancer Center, chose to show her support for the fight against cancer by having her head shaved as part of the Kansas City/Northern Missouri Region of the American Cancer Society’s ninth annual Shave to Save fundraiser, held at the Midland Theater in Kansas City, Mo.

Jennings was one of 28 people who had their heads shaved during the event, which raises money for the American Cancer Society’s Hope Lodge in Kansas City, Mo., a temporary housing facility for those battling cancer.

“It’s such a great facility,” Jennings said of Hope Lodge prior to the first swipe of the electric hair clippers across her short, light blond hair. “And people so desperately need that help at that point in time, that it seemed like shaving my head was an easy thing.”

The event featured Gary Lezak, a cancer survivor and chief meteorologist with KSHB, NBC Action News, as event host. All 28 shavees were brought up to the front of the stage one by one, where Lezak asked them why they had chosen to take part in the fundraiser and offered commentary as the first one or two swipes of hair were made.

Despite never having lost her hair before, Jennings said it was being front and center that made her the most nervous prior to the event.

“You know, I wasn’t as nervous about the head shaving as I was about all the cameras and on stage and all the attention,” she said.

Jennings said each year KCCC has had two people who volunteer to take part in Shave to Save. Her compatriot this year was practice manager Mindy Swayne, whose husband, Steve, is a cancer survivor.

Jennings said she has been lucky not to have lost any immediate family members or friends to cancer, but thought losing her hair was a small price to pay to show her support for those staying at Hope Lodge.

“It felt really good,” Jennings said of how she felt during the process of having her head shaved. “It’s always nice to know you’re doing something to help people out … to sacrifice my hair for people who lose their hair not by choice.”

Still, on first seeing her shaved head, Jennings said she was taken aback at the sight of herself.

“I was a little shocked. I’m not sure what I expected but I was a little shocked,” Jennings said, noting that she has been wearing hats a bit more often these days. “But, of course, everyone I worked with knew what I was doing so (the comments haven’t been) too bad here. I’ve never had so many comments on people liking the shape of my head. I have more people telling me I have a nicely shaped head than I ever would have expected.”

Like a marathon, each participant in Shave to Save raises his or her own money through fundraising. Jennings said she raised close to $7,000 through fundraisers like raffles, a luau day at work, selling grilled hot dogs at work and allowing her coworkers to wear jeans for the price of $2.

“It ended up being a lot more work fundraising than I realized,” Jennings said. “But I also raised a lot more money than I ever thought I could.”

Jennings said it has been difficult at times not having her “hair to hide behind anymore.” But for the benefit of someone battling cancer, she says she’d be willing to do it all over again.

To date, the Shave to Save event has raised $162,000, with 100 percent of proceeds going to Hope Lodge. Donations can still be made to a specific shavee or for the event in general through Aug. 31 at shavetosave.org.

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