AFS brave the shave
On 15 March AFS & Associates hosted the World’s Greatest shave in front of our Bull St office. Ashleigh Turtur and Jas Singh said goodbye to their locks and raised a huge $4,786.63 combined.
Over 70 people came to watch the hair come off as Ashleigh donated a huge 36cm in length of her hair to Variety the Children’s Charity Hair for Heart Campaign, and Jas shaved off his beard for the Leukaemia Foundation World’s Greatest Shave.
Ashleigh’s hair will be used to make a wig for victims of medical conditions such as cancer and alopecia. A single wig can cost up to $6,000 and generally only lasts for around two years. The funds raised will help go towards the making of the wig, as well as Variety’s programs, helping Aussie kids who are sick, disadvantaged or have special needs.
Ash has had long hair since she was young and it had been long enough for her to sit on, roll on in her sleep and wake herself up, not to mention the maintenance.
“My New Year’s resolution was to become more selfless, and I thought what better way to do so than cutting and donating my hair to be made into a specialised wig for someone who has lost their hair due to a medical condition” said Ash.
“The thought of cutting off my long locks absolutely terrified me, however, this is nothing compared to how I can only imagine those dealing with an illness must feel”.
Jas has been growing his perfectly manicured beard since 2016 and decided to shave it off to raise money to go towards research of the knowledge, detection and treatment of blood cancers including leukaemia, lymphoma and myeloma.
“It’s a devastating condition that affects far too many Australians each and every day. We all have stories to tell of ourselves, friends or relatives that have been affected in some way by cancer” said Jas.
“I didn’t think I’d ever be ready to see the beard go and reveal the baby face underneath but it was all worth it to think I have helped others with the funds raised”.
Despite shaving off the beard, he was determined to keep his bushy moustache. However, a last minute crowd attendee (thanks Dennis) asked how many dollars it would take to shave of the moustache – he replied “$1,000”. From there it was on.
CEO Kate Mannix started the bid with a $50 donation, followed by $50 from Dennis, and it went from there. Within a minute the crowd had together chipped in an extra $1,000 on the spot. So off came the moustache!
We are very proud of the selfless act from Ashleigh and Jas despite their nerves and we wish to thank everyone who contributed any donations towards the cause, as well as Ashleigh’s hairdresser, Jess from Hair Retreat, Flora Hill and Sammy, Jas’ barber from Royal Jim’s Barbers.
