Joanne braves head shave for hospice in memory of sister

She hopes to raise £1,000 for St Catherine’s as a thank you for the support they gave Jacqueline and her family in her final hours

A daring NHS worker took the plunge and had her shoulder length hair shaved off in a fundraising stunt for the local hospice which cared for her sister in her final hours.

Joanne Dalton-McEwing had her luscious locks lopped in the hair salon at St Catherine’s Hospice in Lostock Hall, the charity she is hoping to raise £1,000 for in memory of her big sister Jacqueline Thomas.

On assessing her new look, Joanne – who has coloured her hair for many years – said: “It feels very strange! And it looks much greyer than I thought – I didn’t know it would be grey all over, but I actually quite like it. It’s going to take a bit of getting used to that’s for sure, but I’m feeling proud of myself for going through with it.”

Joanne, aged 47 and from Leyland, was inspired to raise funds for St Catherine’s after the care they gave to Jacqueline and her family in September this year.

Jacqueline, who left behind two daughters – Prya, 31, and Jorja, 15 – had breast cancer which had also spread to her bones, colon and stomach. Although she arrived on the in-patient unit just a day before she died, Joanne said their experiences of the hospice’s specialised care was ‘amazing’.

Joanne said: “We as a family were so relieved when she arrived at St Catherine’s. We knew it was what she wanted, and that she was in the best possible hands.

“The detail the staff went into, taking account of her wishes; finding things that she could eat and swallow; being there within seconds when she rang the bell – it was incredible. And they weren’t just there for her, they were there for us too. It was amazing.”

Joanne, who works for Blackburn with Darwen CCG, first considered a sponsored headshave when Jacqueline lost her hair through chemotherapy, but decided against it because it ‘didn’t feel right at that time’.

“I didn’t want to take the attention away from her and what she was going through,” Joanne added.

But the idea stayed with her and she decided now was the time to take the plunge, with friend Jonathon Smith from Jon Sedman’s salon in Leyland giving up time on his day off to complete the shave.

Joanne added: “It was lovely to come back to St Catherine’s to do the head-shave, and I’m very grateful to Jonathon for giving up his time to help.

“I think Jacqueline would be mega proud of me – and she’d also be laughing her head off!”

Joanne has currently raised £640 of her £1,000 target – to help her reach her goal you can click here to sponsor her.

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