May 9, 2006
Karen McKinley
Tuesday May 09, 2006
Hanna Herald � Over the span of two days 26 people - men, women and children - all shaved their heads in the name of finding a cure for cancer.
Hanna Cops4cancer went off without a hitch on Friday afternoon and Saturday, raising $23,783.87 in total for the Canadian Cancer Society. The shaved included members of the Hanna RCMP Detachment, Hanna Fire Department, Fish and Wildlife, Special Areas, Commissionaires, The Royal Canadian Legion Hanna Branch #25 and civilians wanting to help the cause.
Support for the event came from beyond the town itself; people, groups and dollars came from the surrounding district and across the country.
The events started on Friday afternoon at the Alberta Treasury Branch, with customer service supervisor Jeff Raab and Hanna firefighter Kevin Burgemeister getting their heads shaved in the branch. The Treasury Branch raised $831 and Burgemeister raised $2,300.
Saturday�s events included the rest of the head shaves and more. On stage there was a shave every half hour. The first to go were Cst. Alex Giroux and Quinten Moench. Another who was happy to lose her locks was Corinne Galarneau, who was shaved with her son Shane. �I was hoping to get $500 but we received $1,629 in total. Larry worked so hard putting this together.�
Also getting his head shaved was an old friend of organizer Cst. Larry Peyton�s. Cst. Ray Scott of the Coquitlam, B.C. RCMP went though training with him and was initially asked for monetary support. "We are close and I said to put me down for $100 and it progressed from there," he commented. "It is great to see so many here." Others who got shaved included Bob Machum, Rachel Mohl, Audrey and Calvin Smith, Cst. Pat Gay and son Alex, Perry Yake, John Armstrong, Chris Olsen and son, Cole Olsen, Charlie Fielding, Cst. Peyton, and Sgt. Doug Dupin, who managed to get $3,125 to shave his head and moustache.
Five others also stepped up to shave their heads during the day. Two of them, Ryan Long and Drake Gladdish, managed to raise $180 in an hour. �We decided to do this for the fun of it,� Long said.
Service groups were there handing out information and lending support, inclluding Citizens on Patrol for both Hanna and Wainwright along with Big Country Victims Services and Golden Prairie Parent Link. The Hanna Youth Council was also there painting faces and Weekend to End Breast Cancer participants Xenia Frizell and Leah Baird were selling cookies and cancer awareness products.
Citizens on Patrol President Jim Holman said the group was asked by Cst. Peyton to lend their support to the day and they were happy to oblige. "He also asked us to contact the Youth Council and Victims Services, everyone has been very supportive of this event," he stated.
Also there were four members of the Calgary Police Cops4Cancer Iron Man Team; Maureen Bildfell, Bruce Brown, Doug Wagner and Sam Jack. "We are an all-volunteer team consisting of police officers and civilians," Bildfell said. "We are raising money for cancer research as well. Larry contacted us to be a support presence."
In the end Cst. Peyton was overwhelmed by the support. He sad he couldn�t have asked or dreamed for more.
"I am ecstactic," he said after the event concluded. "We got a lot of help from Hanna, Oyen and around the country. I hope this turns into an annual event.�
