State Assemblyman Joe Danielsen (D-17) carries his son, Joey, after the two had their heads shaved for a childhood cancer foundation.

A delegation representing Franklin Township’s Fire District No. 1 – led by State Assemblyman Joe Danelsen (D-17) and his son, Joey – on March 21 donated their hair to a childhood cancer research foundation.

The team joined nearly 100 other people from throughout central New Jersey at the North Plainfield Fire Department for the head-shaving event. Danielsen’s team raised more than $39,000 in the effort.

The money raised will be donated to the St. Baldrick’s Foundation.

“It’s a calling that I have,” Danielsen said of his involvement with the charity. “Children get diagnosed with cancer less than adults, so they get fewer resources and attention.”

The head shaving itself is meant as a symbolic gesture to children who lose their hair during cancer treatments, said Robert Beattie, a captain with the North Plainfield Fire Department and the event’s organizer.

“We’re in our twelfth year and we’ve raised about $650,000, as a rough estimate,” Beattie said. “This year we’re closing in on $90,000, but we’ll have more by the day’s end.”

Beattie said the foundation money also goes to researching the side effects suffered by childhood cancer survivors as they age.

This was the eighth year that Danielsen has shaved his head for the charity.

“It’s to show that the hair is not that important,” he said.

In addition to the two Danielsens, members of the Fire District No. 1 team included: Louie Hajdu-Nemeth, Todd Brown, Jeff Baab, Krista Wershonsjki, Sarah McDonnell, Elijah Heregia, Joe Forte and Jeff Santora.

Joe Danielsen Leads Fire District 1 In Charity Head Shave

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