Chop Your Locks is going virtual in Bellmore-Merrick

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Wellington C. Mepham High School’s annual Chop Your Locks for Charity event is moving to an online venue.

The St. Baldrick’s fundraiser, which has guests cut their hair in support of children with cancer, is being coordinated with members of the Bellmore-Merrick Broadcasting program for a YouTube livestream on June 5 at 7 p.m.

Students, teachers and members of the community can tune in and contribute their own videos of their locks being chopped, either pre-recorded or live.

“It’s incredible what students are doing after this outbreak,” said Kerry Dennis, a Mepham social studies teacher and organizer of the event. “[Chop Your Locks] is not going to be the same as our usual live event, but we can still come together on a virtual platform.”

“One senior said to me, ‘If there’s still childhood cancer, we should still do this event,’” said fellow social studies teacher and organizer Chris Pattern. “Mepham is lucky to have such a generous community. It really speaks to our commitment that we’re sticking with it.”

Chop Your Locks — which will be Mepham’s 10th year hosting the event — is always a student-driven endeavor. This year, students have raised more than $26,000 on the St. Baldrick’s website.

The livestream will also feature performances from students and live interviews with special guests from the Bellmore-Merrick community.

“Right now, a lot of talk is about Covid-19, but childhood cancer didn’t disappear,” said Dennis. “There are still kids being treated and suffering constantly.”

More information on how to contribute clips to the livestream will follow as the plans are finalized.