After 32 years with a beard, Clinton School associate dean Mike Hemphill shaved today to honor a commitment he made to Clinton School students who met their target of raising more than $5,000 for the American Cancer Society’s upcoming Relay for Life.
A crowd of students, along with Dean Hemphill’s son Zak, gathered this morning at the River Market Campus to witness the shaving, which Hemphill said he was glad to do.
“I regret that I only have one beard to give to the cancer society,” Dean Hemphill joked. “This is the largest audience I’ve ever had for an act of personal hygiene.”
The Clinton School team will participate in Relay for Life on April 30. Team members will walk for 24 straight hours to celebrate the lives of people who have battled cancer, and the money they raised will support the work of the society to fight cancer.
After raising just over $1,000 last year, the Clinton School team decided to get creative for this year’s event.
With Dean Hemphill’s beard-shaving commitment as motivation, they used Facebook, Twitter and other creative forms of fundraising to meet their goal.
Hemphill commended the students for their fundraising efforts.
“It’s because of the creative things you guys have done to raise money. That’s where all the heavy-lifting was done,” Hemphill said. “So, I’m happy to do this. This is easy to do, and I think it will all grow back.”
Anna Strong (’11) and Josh Stokes (’10) are serving as captains for Relay for Life, while Julianne Dunn (’10) and Lindsey Barnett (’10) are serving as the planning committee.