He’s been nicknamed ‘Thor’ because of his long golden hair, but Crows rookie Hugh Greenwood will part with his beloved locks on Saturday for a cause very close to his heart.
With his mum Andree battling metastatic breast cancer, the 24-year-old from Tasmania has been inspired to join his dad Michael in shaving his iconic locks in order to raise funds and awareness.
“The plan was always to grow it for the cause and then shave it off, but I got attached to it so kind of put it off,” Greenwood said of his long hair, which first took shape while he was playing college basketball in the US.
“I was going to do it this time so Dad didn’t have to, but he got in too deep, so now we’re both going to shave the locks for an important cause.”
In losing his hair, Greenwood is hoping to increase mindfulness specifically for metastatic or secondary breast cancer, which is the stage when the disease has spread beyond the breast into other adjacent parts of the body (most commonly bones, lungs, liver or brain).
If the cancer spreads past the breast, it is currently incurable and 78% of women die within five years of diagnosis. The initial aim was to raise $7,800 through the shave but with the father and son team working together the fundraising has now exceeded $12,000.
The two are hoping to increase that total ahead of the Seconds Count Gala Ball which is being held in support of Andree on Saturday night in Hobart.
With Greenwood in Adelaide ahead of his game against Norwood in the SANFL on Sunday, he will Skype into the fundraising event so the shave can occur ‘live’ at the same time as his dad.
Funds raised by the Seconds Count Gala Ball will be used by the University of Tasmania's Menzies Institute for Medical Research to fund specific research projects to help find new treatment targets for metastatic cancers.
It’s not the first fundraising initiative Greenwood has been involved with.
During his time at the University of New Mexico, the popular student started the ‘Pink Pack’, which raised tens of thousands of dollars for the UNM Cancer Centre, supporting research, patient care and public outreach. Greenwood has a tattoo of a pink ribbon – the international symbol of breast cancer awareness - on his hand.
To donate to the cause, https://www.mycause.com.au/page/119409/great-stiks-shave-off
