A Glasgow schoolgirl recovering from the devastating sudden death of her dad has shaved her head for charity.
John Frazer was tragically found by daughter Kathryn shortly after he'd had a fatal heart attack earlier this year.
John was 57 when he passed away on January 31. He had an existing heart condition, but family and his two daughters Kathryn, 24, and Zara, 15, have felt his loss particularly keenly.
In a bid to raise awareness while generating £1,160 for Chest Heart and Stroke Scotland and to say thank you to all the people who rallied around the young family following the heartbreaking loss, teenager Zara has had every bit of her thick, curly hair clippered off.
And despite Mum Kirsti Forster issuing a firm 'no!' every time the 15-year-old suggested shaving her head, now she could not be more thrilled she went through with it.
Zara said: “I wanted to do something to remember my dad and also as a way of saying thank you to everyone who helped us afterwards.
“I’d always wanted to shave my head, but mum would never let me until now. I set a target of £200 because I thought that was do-able, but I soon went passed that.
“For the shave itself, I sat in my gran’s back garden and my uncle used the clippers on me. It was strange to see my hair falling around me – it didn’t seem real until then.”
For mum Kirsti, there was no question that she’d back Zara’s fundraising plan, although she admits she was nervous about the end product.
Kirsti said: “I’d always said no when Zara asked to shave her head, but I couldn’t this time because it was for such a great cause.
“I did wonder if she should be left with some hair, but I was overruled and told a head shave has to be all the way! Her hair is very thick, and there was a lot of it. But it was all gone in about 10 minutes. Choosing to get rid of your hair a bold thing for a teenager to do because these are difficult years and not everyone would choose to stand out.
“But Zara looks amazing, so striking. And everyone has been very complimentary. I’m so proud of her for what she’s done. I’m very proud of both of my girls. Kathryn found her dad just after he had died, and it’s been a very traumatic time for them both.
“Friends had set up a GoFundMe to help the girls when they lost their dad. And Zara saw her own GoFundMe as a way of saying thank you to everyone who rallied round us.
“We cannot thank everyone enough for all their support, financial and emotional. It’s wonderful for Zara to know she has made a difference with her efforts.”
Zara, who returns to fourth year at Glasgow’s Hyndland Secondary this week, will do so with the tiniest fuzz of hair starting to grow back. And she could not be happier .
Zara added: “My friends love it and think it looks great. I’m just pleased to have raised the money for such a good cause as Chest Heart and Stroke Scotland.”
Andrea McIntyre, the charity’s Community and Events Manager said: "It was an absolute pleasure to meet Zara and her family. Zara is very brave to do have done something so courageous to raise funds to help and support other people, she really is a true fundraising superhero.”
“All money raised in Scotland stays in Scotland to support people living in our communities with chest, heart and stroke conditions, to provide people with the vital support that they need when they need it most.”
To find out more about the incredible work of Chest, Heart and Stroke Scotland, you can visit their website here.
