George
Town, Grand Cayman, September 18 2019

His
Excellency the Governor, Mr Martyn Roper, will officially launch
proceedings at this Friday’s Seventh Annual Big Shave for the St
Baldrick’s Foundation, at the Wicket in Cricket Square where over
1,000 people are expected to gather to raise funds for childhood
cancer research.

The
event began in 2012 in honor of Hannah, the daughter of Cayman
residents Gaylene and Nigel Meeson, who faced a difficult fight
against brain cancer. Hannah turns
12 today, September 18th,
remarkably with “No Evidence of Disease”.

“We
never thought we would
celebrate Hannah’s 12th birthday, and she has amazingly defied the
odds that left her with a less than 5 percent chance of survival, but
she suffers many disabilities following treatment, including impaired
balance, partial deafness, vision loss, cognitive, memory and fine
motor deficits and slow processing,” Mrs. Meeson said.

“Hannah
is not alone. By the time childhood cancer survivors are 45 years
old, more than 95 percent of them will have a chronic health problem
or life-threatening condition. Without
organizations like St. Baldrick’s, Hannah and children like her
will simply not survive.”

Other
childhood cancer survivors from Cayman will join the event, including
Skylar “Mimi” Ebanks, Saylor
Sperandeo, Annabelle Reading, Ava Paige Rico, Beau Shields, Allie
Capasso, Charli Foster and Tayden Grant.

More
than $125,000
has already been raised toward this year’s $250,000 goal.

Since
its inception, Hannah’s Heroes has raised more than $2.1
million for childhood cancer research at the St. Baldrick’s
Foundation. The St Baldrick’s Foundation has dedicated more than
$279 million to childhood cancer research since its first event in
2000.

Through
sponsorship by Conyers Dill & Pearman, St. Baldrick’s
Foundation
Hero Fund Manager, Kelly Forebaugh will travel from Seattle to Cayman
for the fundraiser.

“I
am profoundly moved by the way the Cayman community
has united to support Hannah’s Heroes and take childhood back from
cancer,” Ms. Forebaugh said. “Hannah’s Heroes Big Shave is one
of St. Baldrick’s largest events, and I am honored to be able to
attend the event again this year and meet the dedicated volunteers
and donors who have generated such resources to help children survive
cancer.”

St.
Baldrick’s has named nine
research grants in recognition of Hannah’s Heroes since 2013.

Over
100 men, women
and children will take to the Big Shave stage to shave their heads on
Friday evening. Teams for this year’s Big Shave include “The
Firebalds” from the Fire Service, corporate team “Maples &
Balder,” Dart, PwC, KPMG, the parents of local childhood cancer
survivors and many local schoolchildren including students from
Cayman International School, Cayman Prep & High School, and
Bodden Town Primary School.

The
event
will also feature a silent auction, balloon prize raffle, photo booth
hosted by Party Booth Cayman and food and drinks specials from the
Brasserie Restaurant.

Organisers
recognize that shaving isn’t for everyone, but are encouraging the
public to get involved throughout Childhood Cancer Awareness month by
hosting bake sales, dress down days at work or school, sponsoring a
colleague or friend shaving at The Big Shave and by attending the
event this Friday.

Visit
www.stbaldricks.org/events/hannahsheroes
or email team@hannahsheroes.ky to get involved or for more
information. 

Notes

The
St. Baldrick’s Foundation is a volunteer-powered charity committed
to funding the most promising research to find cures for childhood
cancers and give survivors long and healthy lives. For more
information visit www.StBaldricks.org

Hannah’s
Heroes is
a Hero Fund of the St Baldrick’s Foundation and is established as a
STAR Trust with Conyers Trust Company (Cayman) Limited, a licensed
trust company, as the Trustee.  It is exempted from registration
under the Non-Profit Organisations Law 2017.