Colorado students shave heads to support 9-year-old classmate battling cancer
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Marlee Pack shaves the head of a supporter. (Fox31)
Third-grader Marlee Park lost her hair after completing more than 40 weeks of chemotherapy, but she won’t be the only student with a smooth scalp— her classmates shaved their heads in solidarity.
Over 65 students and educators at Meridian Elementary School in Broomfield, Colo., participated on March 16, raising more than $25,000 for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, a Monrovia, Calif.-based nonprofit that helps fund childhood cancer research, Fox31 Denver reported.
"I didn't want her to be left out. I did it just for her," student Noah Carrington, 9, told Fox31.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Park’s best friend, Cameron McLaughlin, came up with the idea.
"When Cameron told Marlee she was thinking about shaving her head, Marlee got a huge smile on her face and said, 'We can be baldy besties together!'" Cheray McLaughlin, Cameron's mom, told TODAY.com.
Park was diagnosed about a year ago with alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare soft tissue cancer where cancer cells form in muscle tissue. In March, she learned the is in remission.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}When McLaughlin had her head shaved, her best friend was there to support her.
"It's OK to cry," Marlee said, TODAY.com reported.