Meet Matteo, an 11-year old boy who watched the Cops for Cancer head shave event on the news and wanted to make a difference. He explained that the event made him think of his aunt Mimi who lost her battle with cancer a year ago.
“At first, I thought you just shave your head and that would be it, but then I found out that you had to raise money. It made me feel good to think that I was raising money that could help people,” explained Matteo.
Matteo was invited to Peel Regional Police’s 22 Division, where PRP officers helped complete the shave.
“This year marks our 20th year participating in Cops for Cancer. Each year we continue to grow and set new goals as a police service,” said Constable Taryn Young, Chair of Cops for Cancer for Peel Regional Police. “Stories like Matteo’s show us the importance of community engagement and supporting positive outcomes among youth in Peel. We look forward to continuing our work with our incredible community partners including the Canadian Cancer Society.”
Peel Regional Police has participated in the Cops for Cancer campaign with the Canadian Cancer Society since 2004 raising over $1 million to date. Proceeds are dedicated to medical research, Camp Goodtimes (a medically-supervised summer camp for children and families affected by cancer) and counselling services for parents and legal guardians of children with cancer.
One of the largest events hosted by Peel Regional Police is The Big Shave where officers pledge to shave or cut their hair to raise funds for the Cops for Cancer campaign. This year, The Big Shave will take place at the Square One Shopping Centre on September 9th. Deputy Chief Mark Dapat has pledged to shave his head in support of Cops for Cancer, with Matteo playing the role of barber!
Last year, the Big Shave event alone raised over $15,000, with all proceeds going directly to the Canadian Cancer Society. Peel Regional Police is asking the public to join us once again in supporting the fight against cancer this fall. Remember, if Matteo can do it, so can you!
