Jack Skowronnek feels his shaved head at Chattanoggins, a fundraising event for pediatric cancer care organized by the 12-year-old at the Chattanooga Market on Sunday.Greg and Kelly Heard vividly remember the day more than 12 years ago when they shaved their young son Cody's head. The boy was battling a nerve tissue cancer called neuroblastoma, and the side effects of chemotherapy were just kicking in.
"His hair was coming out in patches, so I said, 'Buddy, if you let me shave yours I'll let you shave mine," said Greg Heard. "He stood up on the commode and shaved it right off."
Greg Heard keeps his head shaved as a tribute to Cody, who died shortly before his sixth birthday. And on Sunday afternoon, Cody's younger brother Lucas, 15, joined his father, shaving off all of his hair at the Jack's Chattanoggins event at the Chattanooga Market.
More than 60 people, ages 4 to 70, parted with their locks Sunday to raise money and show support for children who lose their hair during chemotherapy treatment.
The event, hosted by the Children's Hospital Foundation, is named for Signal Mountain Middle-schooler Jack Skowronneck. Jack was inspired to get his head shaved two years ago by the book "Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie," in which a boy shaves his head in solidarity with his little brother, who has leukemia.
Over the last two years, Jack, 12, has raised money through head-shaving events for the St. Baldrick's Foundation, a nonprofit that raises money for childhood cancer research.
"I want kids to know it's OK to be bald," said the freshly-shaved Skowronneck, who usually sports what he calls "Justin Bieber hair." A shaved head isn't a sign of weakness, he believes: "It's a sign of fight. It shows that people are alive and they are fighting."
When the Children's Hospital Foundation decided to hold its own head-shaving fundraiser, organizers asked Jack to be the face of the event.
The funds raised Sunday will primarily be directed to Erlanger's Center for Pediatric Cancer and Blood Disorders.
Some participants raised money through sponsors online; others brought in checks. Bekki Deck, of Chattanooga, raised $1,800 online to shave her blond hair.
Deck, 31, admitted she was a bit nervous. "I mean, I had no idea what shaped head I had," she said, laughing. But after the shave she said she felt "liberated" and happy to contribute something to the fight.
"We've all had our scares, and we all know someone impacted by cancer," she said.
Many Chattanooga Market vendors donated a percentage of their Sunday sales to the fundraiser, said Ali Dunn, annual giving director with Erlanger Health System Foundations.
"It's been really incredible to see how ready people have been to pitch in. Some of the stories we've seen today have been pretty incredible," she said.
Other "shavees" included mothers who wanted to show their own children diagnosed with cancer how to be brave, and a man who hasn't parted with his ponytail for decades, and Chattanooga Market owner Paul Smith.
Heard said the event was an important step for Lucas and for her family. They look for ways to remember Cody, who would have graduated high school this year.
"It's something special. Sometimes you feel like people have forgotten about it, and so you just look for ways to keep remembering him," she said.
Lucas said he plans to get his own head shaved each year as a tribute to his brother.
And if Jack Skowronneck has his way, there will be opportunities to do that every summer.
"I want it to keep going, and I want it to get really big and spread really far," he said.