x
Breaking News
More () »

11-year-old girl shaves head to celebrate raising $50K for kids with cancer

“I have known that some girls who have cancer,” she explained to WHNT. “They lose their hair and then they feel self-conscious about it.”
head1

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama - 11-year-old Kaitlyn Lee runs to raise money for kids battling cancer.

Her goal was to raise $50,000 for the Jesse Rees Foundation. She did that, and this weekend she celebrated - by having her head shaved.

Kaitlyn has never been touched by cancer, but through her work helping cancer patients, she has learned a lot about how it affects kids and their families. She doesn't split hairs when she talks about why helping kids with cancer is important and that's why she chose to stand in solidarity with them by shaving her head.

Saturday was the big day.  Was she nervous? No.

She tried to sleep in so when she woke up she would have less time to wait for the celebration.

"I was like, 'OK, come on, come on, let's just be late so I don't have to wait so long," Kaitlyn laughed.

When it was finally time for her to get in the chair she was surrounded by family and friends at the fundraising event. Her mom read words of encouragement coming from Facebook.

"Nikki says, 'You go, girl, what an inspiration," Nina Lee said.

Kaitlyn truly is an inspiration. She donated her hair to charity, and when the clippers came out, she joked about being more aerodynamic.

After her head was completely shaved Kaitlyn was given a mirror so she could see her new look.

"I have known that some girls who have cancer," she explained to WHNT. "They lose their hair and then they feel self-conscious about it."

She wants to show them that being bald is beautiful.

"Hair is just something we have," she said. "It's just something that grows on our bodies. It's not that important."

But what is important is continuing her journey. She has already set her next fundraising goal for $100,000.

Before You Leave, Check This Out