“I’ve never seen so many bald heads.”
Newly shorn Santa Barbara County fire Capt. Vince Agapito looked around in amazement at Station 11, where the garage that normally houses firetrucks had been transformed into a temporary salon Sunday. Firefighters sat in every chair, happily having their heads shaved for a “Bald is Beautiful” fundraiser. By midmorning, Agapito said, more than 40 people had stopped by for the shearing, himself included.
In exchange for a $20 donation, members of the public were invited to have their heads shaved at the firehouse, 6901 Frey Way, with the proceeds going to the nonprofit Santa Barbara County Firefighters Benevolent Foundation, which provides benefits for families of firefighters who have been injured in the line of duty.
“It started out with firefighters in the line of duty,” Agapito said. “Now, we address just about anything. If there’s a firefighter in need, or his or her family is in need, then we provide those benefits that maybe insurance wouldn’t provide.”
Sunday’s fundraiser was specifically designed to assist two firefighters, Tyler Gilliam and Dean Moore, who are undergoing treatment for testicular and colon cancers, respectively. As both men started treatment, the foundation was able to pitch in to help their families pay some of the extraneous costs.
“When Tyler went in to the hospital for his chemo, we paid for the travel, hotel and food for his parents to be with him,” Agapito said.
In the past, the foundation has done the same for firefighters who have gone to the burn center for treatment. Most of the funds from the benevolent foundation go to family members, and will continue to help Gilliam and Moore’s families. Gilliam has already gone through four rounds of chemotherapy and will soon go to UCLA for surgery. Moore is at a care facility in Oxnard waiting for his next surgery.
In addition to being a show of solidarity for Gilliam and Moore, another goal of Sunday’s event was to raise awareness. Firefighters are twice as likely to develop testicular cancer and have significantly greater rates of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and prostate cancer than nonfirefighters, according to a 2006 study from the University of Cincinnati. The study also concluded that firefighters are at greater risk for multiple myeloma. Exposure to fumes and gases — such as asbestos, silicates and formaldehyde — can increase these risks. The study also warned that firefighters are at risk of inhaling diesel fumes from running trucks if firehouses are not adequately ventilated.
Firefighter and cancer survivor Eric Daniels discovered he had cancer before the fund was created four years ago. Daniels was diagnosed in 1999, and has turned to alternative treatments to deal with his illness, so he can’t say if he’s in remission or not. He was on hand to have his head shaved Sunday, and said that firefighters were especially vulnerable to certain types of cancer because of their exposure to carcinogens every time they respond to a fire.
“There is no emergency out there that we don’t get called to,” he said. “We get multiple hits as a result.”
In addition to the “Bald is Beautiful” fundraiser, the foundation is always trying to raise money via annual golf tournaments, burrito sales, T-shirt sales and pancake breakfasts. Based on the chairs full of willing volunteers and the growing pile of hair clippings on the floor, Sunday was a success for the fund, and for the funding that will eventually go to the families of Gilliam and Moore. Click here to make an online donation to the Santa Barbara County Firefighters Benevolent Foundation.
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— Noozhawk staff writer Lara Cooper can be reached at lcooper@noozhawk.com.
