Siblings shave heads for charity

In a bold move to raise funds for charity, a brother and sister from Cork are opting to shave off their hair. On 26 June, Adrian Duffy & Fiona Doyle, will take part in a simultaneous head-shave, one in Ireland, one in Spain.

Fiona, a primary school teacher in Killorglin, Kerry, will take the plunge in the school where she works. Adrian, who is a digital marketing specialist in Spain, will get his head shaved at the exact same moment, in a dual video call. The pair are raising funds for the Irish Heart Foundation and Recovery Haven, a cancer support service.

The siblings from Kerry Pike, have been involved in charitable endeavours throughout their life with Adrian saying that their parents were “always giving back and helping charities”.

Fiona is no stranger to the experience of having her head shaved, having done it once before. She acknowledges that while it can be challenging, knowing that charities will benefit makes it all worthwhile.

“I originally shaved my head 20 years ago when I was in college. At the time I did it for Crumlin Children's Hospital,” she told the Cork Independent.

“I always said I would do it again at some stage. I decided a few months ago that I wanted to do it this year. As a woman, it is a little daunting shaving my hair.

“The hair itself will be donated to the Little Princess Trust. They can use it to make wigs for children. I feel that if I can raise so badly needed funds for both charities then it will be well worth it. My hair will grow back hopefully as quickly as it did the last time.”

In a show of solidarity, Adrian also shaved his head along with his sister 20 years ago, and he is set to do the same again this time around.

“As a brother I wanted to be there for her, so I did a head shave too. When she was doing it again, I decided I would too.”

Adrian is full of praise for his sister, saying: “She’s doing it in front of the full school, and that’s a really is a big thing. She is showing her kids and her school what it is to be brave. It would be very hard to find women in Ireland who would make that sacrifice. I’m just trying to do my bit to help but the bigger sacrifice comes from her.”

The siblings who have already raised €7,000 for charity are hoping to encourage others to do the same by organising their own headshave and have set up a website shaveforgood.org for those who would like to get involved. Adrian expressed his hope that with increased participation, the charity will grow exponentially.