My 12 year old daughter Gracie has asked if she could set up this Just Giving page on my account. She says:

On Thursday 26th September I will Brave the Shave so that I can:

1. Donate my hair to The Little Princess Trust.  A local charity that provides real hair wigs to children and young people with hair loss.
2. Raise money to support the vital work of Samaritans. They work to make sure fewer people die by suicide.  

I have decided to shave my head and donate my hair in support of children and young adults who lose their hair through illness and without having a choice. I cannot imagine the effect it would have on appearance and confidence.  I would like to Brave the Shave and choose to be bald so that others don't have to be.

The money I raise from Braving the Shave will go towards Samaritans.  I have chosen this charity because of the work they do to support people thinking about suicide.  Sadly the issue of suicide affected my school recently and the impact was devastating for the family and everyone at school.  I want to help Samaritans stop this happening to other people in this situation, and reduce the number of suicides.

Thank you to all at Nikki's Hair and Beauty Salon in Kidderminster; especially Nikki P and Becky. 

Every six seconds someone contacts the Samaritans.  Volunteers are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

In 2017 there were 6,213 suicides in the UK and Ireland.

How will the money raised help?

• £10 could cover the cost of two calls for help from someone struggling to cope.
• £25 could keep the Samaritans helpline open for seven minutes.
• £46 could help train and support a Samaritan volunteer for a year.
• For every £1 donated, 85p goes on services and just 15p is invested in raising the next £1.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Gracie x

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.