Way to Go! Mepham student raised $6G for cancer awareness
Cayden Volpe, left, a student at Wellington C. Mepham High School in Bellmore, with her sister, Camryn. Credit: Bellmore-Merrick Central High SD
A Bellmore student whose younger brother has pediatric cancer was the top fundraiser in a districtwide event to benefit the St. Baldrick’s Foundation.
Cayden Volpe, a junior at Wellington C. Mepham High School, raised $6,000 as part of a Chop Your Locks fundraiser in which nearly 250 people donated money or vowed to shave their heads to show solidarity for those with cancer. This year's event raised more than $70,000, the second-highest amount in the event's 12-year history.
One of this year's honorees was Volpe's brother, Carsyn, a seventh-grader at Grand Avenue Middle School in Bellmore.
"I didn't think I would raise that much money," said Cayden Volpe, 16, who spread the word about her charitable efforts on social media. Of the event's importance, she said: "It brings the community together and helps raise more awareness, whether you can relate to it or not."
The lock-chopping event also included raffles, food booths and a performance by Mepham's Skull and Bones Drama Club, which staged a musical number from its production of "Beauty and the Beast." Heads were shaved by members of the cosmetology program at Sanford H. Calhoun High School in Merrick.
"Our community is just so generous and so kind, and we're fortunate to be able to support people," said the event's co-organizer and social studies chairwoman, Robyn Einbinder.
— MICHAEL R. EBERT
Michael R. Ebert is an education researcher and has worked for Newsday in various capacities since 2003. He was part of an 11-person team named as 2008 Pulitzer Prize finalists for investigative coverage of the LIRR's platform safety issues.
