CLEVELAND — At University of Hospitals Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital, St. Baldrick’s has been raising money for pediatric cancer research by people shaving their heads. 

Jeremy Willets’ daughter, Cordelia, was diagnosed with stage four neuroblastoma at 8 weeks old.

"It was a long journey for her to get healthy,” he said.

Cordelia spent seven months living at University Hospitals Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital while getting treatment in 2013, which is when Willets first learned about the St. Baldrick’s head shaving event.

“Since then, we’ve been back every single year to do this and to raise money for pediatric cancer research because pediatric cancer research is likely criminally underfunded, and every two minutes around the world a child is diagnosed with cancer,” he said. 

Each year, Willets gets a team of people together each year to shave their heads. The team consists of coworkers, friends and even nurses who have helped care for his daughter. 

“To date, we’ve raised over $100,000 for St. Baldrick’s in our time doing it,” he said.

Cordelia is now a healthy 12-year-old, and she’s been cancer free for years. Jeremy has continued to do the event as a way to stand in solidarity with those who have cancer. 

“Every year when we go to this particular event, there are people who are currently undergoing treatment that will be there that don’t have a choice as to whether they have hair or not because the drugs that they are taking to hopefully cure them and end this terrible disease (that) has taken their hair,” he said.