Why This Duo Continues to Go Bald for Bucks Every Year
For more than 10 years, the Buffalo Sabres have proudly teamed up with Bald for Bucks to raise critically needed funds for cancer research and patient care programs at Roswell Park. We kicked off an exciting month this year with a commemorative Buffalo Sabres and Bald for Bucks T-shirt, offered throughout the month of March as a fundraising reward for participants and donors. Together, we raised more than $96,000 for cancer care and research at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center with people from 40 different states and seven countries donating to the cause.
This month’s fundraiser culminated in a head-shaving event at Key Bank Center on Friday, March 31, where fans and supporters cheered on Dan DunLeavy and Marty Biron as they shaved their heads. Sophia LaBorde, a pediatric cancer patient at Roswell Park, did the honors of buzzing off their hair and skillfully gave them each a fresh new look.
“I had fun!” Sophia said. “I relate to getting my hair shaved off, and it’s really nice to have supporters.”
Sophia, age 13, has been in active treatment at Roswell Park for hepatocellular carcinoma. She encourages everyone to get involved with Bald for Bucks, even if it’s scary to cut or shave your head.
“Do what you want to do. People might judge you, but you’re beautiful either way, no matter what,” she said, smiling.
Dan Dunleavy on Going Bald for Bucks
When asked why he chose to go Bald for Bucks for the seventh year in a row, Dan said his reasons are two-fold: He is honoring his wife’s cancer journey while also getting to meet other cancer warriors like Sophia.
“Every year, it feels great to be doing Bald for Bucks for the reasons we’re doing it. Meeting Sophia for the first time this year … she just melted my heart, that girl. I sat down and asked her, ‘So, what’s your story?’ and she got right into it. Hearing about her cancer battle and everything she’s fighting, it reminds me why it’s so easy to shave my head to draw awareness to the fight that she’s in and the fight that my wife is in, as well.”
Dan recalls when his wife first received her cancer diagnosis and how devastating that news was. He also remembers how difficult it was for her to lose her hair. Though he’d been involved in Bald for Bucks before her diagnosis, that experience added even more urgency to raising funds to end cancer for good.
“Now, I look back and realize that we’re showing people that it’s not the hair on our head; it’s the strength in our heart,” he said.
Dan encourages everyone to go Bald for Bucks. The best part, according to him, is that you don’t have to use shampoo for weeks after you shave your hair off!
Marty Biron on Going Bald for Bucks
Marty shares reasons similar to Dan’s for going Bald for Bucks. He has been participating in the head-shaving fundraiser since 2015 and avidly supports the cause. He says that he watches kids on social media go Bald for Bucks in school and wants to show that you can support cancer patients, even as an adult.
“It matters because cancer touches everybody. The ones in the fight have to go through treatment, and going Bald for Bucks shows solidarity and lifts everybody’s spirits,” Marty said. “It’s a small gesture, just to shave your head, but we all have people in our lives that have gone through the process and had to lose their hair. This goes right to the heart.”
This year, Marty decided to shave his hair even shorter, letting Sophia use a level one on the electric shaver as opposed to a two. In the past, he’s left some hair on his head, but he decided to change it up this time. He hopes others will get involved and raise a little, if not a lot, for the cause.
“Just do it! Don’t even think about it. Raise a little money. Raise a lot of money. It all goes a long way,” he said.
Thank You
A very special thank you goes out to the Buffalo Sabres, including Marty Biron and Dan Dunleavy, as well as Studio 14120, and Sophia for all of the incredible support.
If you’re inspired by Marty, Dan and Sophia, consider going Bald for Bucks today.