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M.L. brain tumour campaign raises awareness and $4,500

Jun 5, 2018 | 5:00 PM

Meadow Lake’s Andrea Cote quite literally shaved some time off her morning hair routine in support of a friend and co-worker who was recently diagnosed with a brain tumour.

Cote lost her locks because she surpassed her ‘Shave My Mane for Your Brain’ goal of $2,500, raising just over $4,500 through a month-long fundraiser and awareness campaign. One hundred per cent of the proceeds are going to the Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada, she said, an organization which offers support and funds research.

“We definitely exceeded the goal, and got almost double what we thought we would,” Cote said. “The support was awesome. It was beyond our expectations.”

In a previous interview with meadowlakeNOW, Cote, a local pharmacy assistant, said the condition is close to her heart because her son Kevin, who is now 30, was diagnosed with a brain tumour at the age of four. Michelle Jahnke, Cote’s colleague from Madill’s Drugs, also found out earlier this year she has a non-malignant tumour.

The funds were raised through a combination of online and in-person donations, including proceeds from GreyMatters lapel pins and bracelets, and the fundraising drive also coincided with Brain Tumour Awareness Month in May.

Jahnke said she was surprised to learn how many other lives have been touched by brain tumours and cancers in the city and region.

“It’s been amazing to know how many people who have suffered who’ve never said anything,” Jahnke said. “There are those who have said they’d have never know the signs to watch for.”

Jahnke said she made an appointment with a neurologist who discovered her tumour after she started suffering from headaches. She said warning signs include tingling in the ears, trouble with eyesight, vomiting, and loss of mobility in the arms. Thankfully, she said, the headaches are the only symptom she’s experienced so far. Her specialists said the tumour in her brain isn’t growing in size, she said, and they’re quite certain it is non-cancerous.

“At first you want to keep it to yourself,” she said, “but then you realize there’s lots of people out there, and the more people that know, the better.”

 

 

kathy.gallant@jpbg.ca

On Twitter @ReporterKath