EAST AMHERST, N.Y. — Five parents took on a brand-new hair style Sunday, all in support of childhood cancer.
“Once I do this it makes me feel really good that I can help somebody out there, said Mike Noworyta, who’s own 11-year-old daughter Keeley has been in remission for two years. “It’s just hair, it’ll come back when they’re done fighting.”
The five families gathered at Hair Reformation by Natalie in East Amherst.
The event was originally created to support Mia DeCamilla. She is just 6 years old and has spent the last year and a half battling childhood undifferentiated embryonal sarcoma of the liver.
She was in full support of the event and shared why it’s such a big deal for her.
“Because some kids don’t have their hair growing… [Parents should do it] Because it’s kind.”
“When my daughter was diagnosed, she was having a hard time with losing her hair, she knew it was going to happen,” said Mia’s mom, Sherry DeCamilla. “But then she came up to me and was like ‘mom, would you [shave] your hair?’ and I was like ‘of course’ and I actually shaved it every month for her.”
In May 2023, Mia thought she finally beat the cancer, only to get some bad news from her doctors about a nodule that they saw on a post treatment check-up.
“[It was hard] knowing she’d have to do that again and see her sick,” said Sherry. “She had just lost a part of herself.”
A fundraiser was made for their family and if they reached $5,000, Sherry along with other supporters would shave their heads in support of Mia.
However, before the razor ever touched a hair on Sherry’s head, a new wave of good news was passed along.
“The nodule was non-cancerous,” Sherry said. “It was a big relief, because no parent wants to experience what their child has gone through.”
Although the good news could have put a stop to the hair shaving event, Sherry and four other parents whose kids have battled or are currently battling cancer shaved their heads in support of not just Mia, but of all the other kids going through their own fights as well.
Mia had her last chemo treatment Tuesday, July 25 and now all she wants is for her mom to show off her awesome new hair style.
“It’s pretty,” Mia said. “Because no matter what, it’s still [pretty, even if] it’s bald.”
