School becomes shearing shed
Taiaroa McDonald's classmates have made sure he does not stick out by getting the same haircut as him after the 17-year-old was diagnosed with cancer.
The King's High School first XV halfback was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma in March, and is in the midst of his chemotherapy.
His best friend and team captain Charlie Heller, 18, organised for the team to shave off their hair and fundraise for this year's Shave for a Cure effort.
About 70 boys from King's ended up joining the effort at lunchtime yesterday.
Taiaroa said he began noticing symptoms during his preseason training earlier this year.
"That was pretty shocking for me," he said.
"It caught me quite off guard because I wasn't really expecting to hear that [the diagnosis]."
Rugby quickly became secondary for him and he had to prioritise his health.
"It'd be great to be playing rugby this year, but next year I'll be playing anyway."
Taiaroa was keeping a strong mindset by considering others less fortunate than him.
"There's always someone in a worse position.
"Some people are in stage four, I'm only in stage two.
"My circumstances aren't exactly good, but I'm still able to get out and go to the gym and enjoy my life still."
He said he was living a relatively normal life and was reacting to the therapy well.
He still trained with his first XV team-mates and would be filling up water bottles at the games.
Taiaroa said he had taken on the role of "technical adviser".
"I pretty much do everything except for when Saturday comes around.
" I don't walk out on to the field with the boys, which is tough.
"I'd really like to think that I would have had a big season not just with King's, but for myself this year, but I'm still behind the boys all the way and I reckon they'll do well."
Charlie said it was pretty gutting for him to hear what his friend was going through and he wanted to help.
"It's pretty easy when you have a great mate like Tai just to get behind him and with a good bunch of boys we can support him and make him feel a bit better during his tough times."
He said having the same haircut would bring the team a lot closer together.
It was motivating to know that Taiaroa was on the sidelines when they were having a tough time on the field.
The team had fundraised $5117 so far and the money raised would go towards finding a cure for Hodgkin's lymphoma.
• Donations could be made using the following link: www.shaveforacure.co.nz/fundraisers/kingshighschool1stxv759/shave-for-a-...
mark.john@odt.co.nz
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Otago Daily Times
2 days ago
- Otago Daily Times
School becomes shearing shed
Taiaroa McDonald's classmates have made sure he does not stick out by getting the same haircut as him after the 17-year-old was diagnosed with cancer. The King's High School first XV halfback was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma in March, and is in the midst of his chemotherapy. His best friend and team captain Charlie Heller, 18, organised for the team to shave off their hair and fundraise for this year's Shave for a Cure effort. About 70 boys from King's ended up joining the effort at lunchtime yesterday. Taiaroa said he began noticing symptoms during his preseason training earlier this year. "That was pretty shocking for me," he said. "It caught me quite off guard because I wasn't really expecting to hear that [the diagnosis]." Rugby quickly became secondary for him and he had to prioritise his health. "It'd be great to be playing rugby this year, but next year I'll be playing anyway." Taiaroa was keeping a strong mindset by considering others less fortunate than him. "There's always someone in a worse position. "Some people are in stage four, I'm only in stage two. "My circumstances aren't exactly good, but I'm still able to get out and go to the gym and enjoy my life still." He said he was living a relatively normal life and was reacting to the therapy well. He still trained with his first XV team-mates and would be filling up water bottles at the games. Taiaroa said he had taken on the role of "technical adviser". "I pretty much do everything except for when Saturday comes around. " I don't walk out on to the field with the boys, which is tough. "I'd really like to think that I would have had a big season not just with King's, but for myself this year, but I'm still behind the boys all the way and I reckon they'll do well." Charlie said it was pretty gutting for him to hear what his friend was going through and he wanted to help. "It's pretty easy when you have a great mate like Tai just to get behind him and with a good bunch of boys we can support him and make him feel a bit better during his tough times." He said having the same haircut would bring the team a lot closer together. It was motivating to know that Taiaroa was on the sidelines when they were having a tough time on the field. The team had fundraised $5117 so far and the money raised would go towards finding a cure for Hodgkin's lymphoma. • Donations could be made using the following link:
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Students abuzz after topping NZ schools in cancer fundraiser
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Otago Daily Times
6 days ago
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Students abuzz after topping NZ schools in cancer fundraiser
Otago Boys' High School students rub their freshly shaved heads. PHOTO: PETER MCINTOSH When a group of boys at a Dunedin secondary school decided to shave their hair for a cause they did not expect to be leading the country with their fundraising efforts. Otago Boys' High School has raised more than $21,000 for Shave for a Cure this year and leads schools across the country in the collection effort. Over 45 boys had their heads shaved at the school last Friday. The fundraising effort was organised by service prefect Flynn MacGill-Brown, 17, who was shocked when he found out they had raised more than double their initial target of $10,000. He said it felt good to be the top school in the country for funds raised for Leukaemia & Blood Cancer New Zealand. "It's a pretty amazing achievement. "I didn't think it would get anywhere near this big at all. It was so good to see the all the boys get involved." The boys got their head shaved in the school's open-air theatre as it was pouring with rain. "The weather was really against us," Flynn said. Nonetheless, the atmosphere was great and there was a lot of support from peers. "Some guys got involved on the day just because they could which was nice to see. "Everyone seemed like they were having a good time." Flynn said he had a few family members affected with cancer and wanted to make an effort to do something about it. "I know it is so prominent in the community today so we just wanted to help out and put some support and awareness around it. "We participate in this cause because too many people have to deal with blood cancer and leukaemia. "All the boys involved will now live out the next few months with minimal hair on their head because it is only a fraction of what people suffering have to go through."
