Birmingham based vendor Lynne Smith recently underwent a transformation to give back and support others. On 20th October Lynne ‘braved the shave’ and cut her long lustrous locks off all for a good cause. Lynne shaved her head to support Macmillan Cancer Support having experienced the loss of her grandfather to cancer at a young age. Not only was Lynne able to raise funds for Macmillan, but Lynne also realised her actual hair could also be donated to help someone. Lynne donated her hair to the Little Princess Trust – a charity which provides free real-hair wigs to children that have lost their own hair through cancer treatment or other illnesses.
We are so happy that The Big Issue has been able to support Lynne to a place where she is able to pay it forward and give back to others! What an inspiration!
Lynne showing off her beautiful hair moments before she ‘Braved the Shave’
And after rocking the shave – inspirational!
WHY I BRAVED THE SHAVE
I have had many struggles in my life, homelessness, addiction and self-harming, but I battled through it all and I am now a successful Big Issue seller and very proud of how far I have come. I have been growing my hair for ten years, after a nervous breakdown some years before where I shaved my hair off. Today, I am in a much better place all thanks to Birmingham Big Issue who have always been there to support me. Lots of friends and family have been affected by cancer, my granddad had lung cancer and as a small child I clearly remember sitting at his bedside, while he was so sick, he died when I was 6 years old. More recently, other close people to me have been struck by cancer even one of my customers, so I started thinking what can I do? I had very long hair and I have looked after it well. So, there was only one thing I could do and that was to give something money can’t buy, I decided to ‘Brave the Shave’. I have raised £226 so far and donated about 26 inches of hair to the Little Princess Trust, which means that a wig can be made for a child with cancer and is having chemotherapy. I really hope it brightens the day of some young one that may not have many more tomorrows. I was more than happy to donate my hair. My hair is already growing back fast, people keep calling me Sir, but i just brush it off knowing I did my bit to help. I am now looking for other thing I can do for charity. Giving is the greatest feeling ever, my ex-hubby was inspired too, and he is a biker with a beard and he shaved off his moustache. I hope this will inspire others to do what they can.
