The battle with leukaemia is something most people will never experience in their life and few personally know someone who goes through the diagnosis and treatment.
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It was Shaun Stoneman and Richard Ryan’s friendship with Becky Hart in the offices of the Newcastle Herald that inspired them to ‘be brave and shave’ as part of the World’s Greatest Shave, after seeing their mate’s “determination to fight”.
“I’ve never really known someone who has been effected by that type of cancer before, and the way she was powering through it inspired me to try and spread awareness and help her,” Ryan said.
The now-bald pair were part of a five-person group called ‘Becky’s Warriors’, who all took the plunge together on March 17 to shave.
Alongside Ryan and Stoneman were Nick Roberts, James Fisher and the Mudgee Guardian’s Paige Sales.
Becky, who’s leukemia is currently in remission, was the lynch-pin of the weekend shaving frenzy and she even supplied a professional hairdresser for event.
“I’m glad we had someone in charge who knows how to cut hair off, because I was worried we’d be left with some tufts and stray hairs and things otherwise,” Stoneman laughed.
“There was a lot more trust there because she knew what she was doing from the start.”
Both Stoneman and Ryan urged anyone who was considering getting involved with the World’s Greatest Shave to “take the plunge”.
“It’s so easy, when you sign up they give you a call, and you get sent a lot of links and a start-up package, so they make it a really smooth process,” Stoneman said.
“Go ahead and do it – it’s not just about the research, the foundation gives people counselling and it helps the people diagnosed and their families through the process.”
The pair also revealed their shaved heads had been the talk of the office since returning to work, with both being subjected to “non-stop head touching”.
“I was sitting in a meeting and I just felt someone rubbing my head, it was a bit of a surprise if I’m being honest,” Ryan said.
Stoneman also confirmed a change of office habits was on the cards.
“It turns out the office has a bit of a draft right where I’m sitting that I hadn’t ever noticed before,” he said. “Definitely a bit chillier now.”