The St. Baldrick’s Foundation, the largest private funder of childhood cancer research grants, and the St. Baldrick’s Be Brooks Brave Hero Fund, announced on Monday a new event to raise awareness and funds for pediatric brain tumor research while honoring a young Carmel boy.
The Be Brooks Brave and Shave event will be held 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 19 inside the Grand Park Events Center in Westfield. The Colts cheerleaders will be making an appearance, plus local celebrities and athletes who also plan to join in on the fun.
Brooks Blackmore was diagnosed with two, Stage IV, inoperable brain tumors in June 2015 at the tender age of five.
“We were told there was no cure or any effective treatment options,” said Brooks’ mother and founder of the Be Brooks Brave Hero Fund, Tracey Blackmore.
Brooks sadly passed away on May 21, 2016, after a hard-fought, 11-month battle with cancer.
“Brooks has forever changed our lives and we are so blessed to have loved him even for six short years,” said Blackmore. “We would do it all again, just to call him our son.”
At St. Baldrick’s signature head-shaving events, people volunteer to shave their heads as a way to raise money for lifesaving childhood cancer research, while also standing in solidarity with children who typically lose their hair during cancer treatment.
This year, St. Baldrick’s honored Brooks by making him one of five St. Baldrick’s Foundation Ambassadors. Brooks is the only “angel” of these five ambassadors – representing the reality that one in five kids diagnosed with cancer won’t survive.
Funds raised through the Be Brooks Brave and Shave event will support the St. Baldrick’s Be Brooks Brave Hero Fund. The Blackmore family has raised around $100,000 since Brooks gained his angel wings and has raised more than $10,500 in 2018 alone.
“Pediatric cancer only receives 4 percent of the U.S. government funding for cancer research, with brain tumor research only receiving 1 percent,” Blackmore said. “We are now dedicated to changing this outcome and pray this money makes the difference in helping future families faced with the same devastating news.”
Whether you decide to shave your head, volunteer or donate, you should come be part of the excitement. For more information on the Be Brooks Brave and Shave event, visit StBaldricks.org/Events. You can also click here to donate.
This event is supported by Methodist Sports Medicine and Grand Park.
About St. Baldrick’s Foundation
As the largest private funder of childhood cancer research grants, the St. Baldrick’s Foundation believes that kids are special and deserve to be treated that way. St. Baldrick’s is leading the charge to take childhood back from cancer by funding some of the most brilliant childhood cancer research experts who are working to find cures and better treatments for all childhood cancers. Kids need treatments as unique as they are – and that starts with funding research just for them. Visit StBaldricks.org to help support the best cancer treatment for kids.