Three WMS teachers prepare to shave their heads for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation
SHAVE THE DAY: From left to right Mr. Malmstrom, Mr. Murphy, and Mr. Olvesen pose for a picture
Mar 16, 2022
WMS teachers will be shaving their heads on April 15th to raise money for pediatric cancer research through the St. Baldrick’s Foundation. The event is organized by language arts teacher, Mr. Murphy.
Mr. Murphy has been organizing this event for years now and said he’s “never regretted anything.” He said that he “loves the cause” and every aspect of it. He first found out about it in college and ever since then, he’s organized it every year.
Mr. Murphy, before shaving his head, lets his students pick his new hair cut before shaving it off. He likes to make it enjoyable for the kids.
Mr. Murphy maintains an active presence around school and he said, “I think that being a teacher is not just standing in a classroom, but it’s being in the community and culture of the school.”
STEM teacher, Mr. Olvesen, said he “cannot wait” to shave off his hair. This is not his first time raising money for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation as he said, “Two years ago I raised $1640.” He hopes that this will encourage students to participate in the event next year.
This year Mr. Olvesen decided to do something different this time around and donate his hair to be created into a wig for either adults or children to Wigs for kids. He said he does not know because he thinks he has “too many white hairs.” Mr. Olvesen has grown his hair out for exactly 2 years on March 18 .
Mr. Malmstrom, language arts and journalism teacher, said he was “nervous” the first time he participated because he was afraid of what he would like with a shaved head, but it ended up being “not so bad.” Mr. Malmstrom also said he ran 5k charity runs for cancer research.
Mr. Malmstrom has personal experience with a story of one of his closest friends passing away from cancer before entering high school, and he also lost his Aunt Peg. He said both represent one of the many reasons he’s participating.
Mr. Malmstrom said that he believes the most important part of the whole process is “creating a sense of community.” He continued, “It makes me happy when a community comes together to do good.”
Isabella Summers, a seventh grader at WMS, shared her opinion about the event,“It’s good, especially if it’s raising money.”
If anyone would like to help raise money and donate, the link is below.