Tattoo artists at Soul Case Tattoo in Sylvan Lake were extremely busy Saturday during a marathon fundraiser.
They volunteered their time and did more than 70 tattoos, working until 1 a.m., to assist former Sylvan Lake resident Marianne Stange and her friends raise money for Kids Cancer Care Foundation of Alberta.
The marathon raised $6,300 of the almost $9,000 collected during Stange’s initiative.
After watching the daughter of a family friend lose her leg to cancer, Stange decided to raise money to aid the fight against cancer by shaving her head and also donating her hair to children who have lost theirs.
“I’m nervous when I think about losing my hair,” she said. “But when I think about the little girl I know who has just lost her leg, or about the thousands of other people who are affected by cancer each year, I feel privileged to be able to provide a wig for some brave child battling cancer. I hope that through my efforts I can not only raise money to help the fight against cancer, but also inspire others to join me in supporting this worthy cause.”
Now an administrative associate at Western Financial Group in Lloydminster, she had half her head shaved at their office last Thursday.
Then Saturday night at Cities Gastro Pub in Sylvan she relinquished the remainder of her long locks.
She arranged for her hair to be sent to Locks of Love, a non-profit organization that provides hairpieces for young people in Canada and the United States.
Joining her to have their heads shaved Saturday night were Robbie Yates, Chastity Graham and Sarah Kuntz.
The deed was done by Shauna Hills of Tidal Wave Salons and Spa.
At press time Tuesday, Stange had raised $8,500 and was still waiting on a few more donations. She expected the total to be around $9,000.
Donations may still be made by visiting www.kidscancercare.ab.ca, select Shave, then the Pledge a Shave option, then type Stange’s campaign name, A Kids Wish, in option 1 to visit her pledge page.
Stange lived in Sylvan Lake for about 15 years after going to school in Caroline. She moved from here about three and a half years ago.