Sinead O’Connor was one of the first international singers to sport a shockingly bald head. She has more recently been followed by Britney Spears.

But what would make females shave their heads?

Well there are quite a few possibilities. One is that they might be nuts. The other might also be that they are nuts or they have something living in their hair. Or, a third might be for a more philanthropic reason.

Christine DaCosta is one of many Bermudians and non-Bermudians who will shave their heads for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation and Locks of Love, at the Robin Hood Pub and Restaurant, on March 16, the day before St. Patrick’s Day, to raise money for cancer research.

At the moment there are 14 local participants listed on the St. Baldrick’s website including Josh Bento, Alex Davis, Team Logic (which involves six people), Michael Marra IV and Mike Marra, David Radulski, Amanda Sodergren and Andree Thorpe, who also did it three years ago.

Ms DaCosta, an assistant underwriter at ACE, told The Royal Gazette that St. Baldrick’s was started by reinsurance executives.

In 1999, three reinsurance executives in Manhattan came up with a plan to go bald for the good of community — they ended up sparking a charitable event which has now spread to ten countries and 42 US states and raised over $20 million.

“They came up with this big joke to shave their heads on St. Patrick’s Day,” Ms DaCosta said.

“Their goal was to raise $17,000 on March 17, and to get 17 of their employees to raise $1,000 each and they ended up raising $104,000.

The volunteer baldies are happy to contribute their hair for a good cause.

“For about two years, many of my friends had been doing charitable things like missionary work in Africa and I kind of sat back and thought, ‘what am I doing?’ I haven’t been doing anything that has any charitable significance,” said Ms DaCosta of her decision to participate in St. Baldrick’s. “It was something that had been playing in the back of my mind for a few years and after going to this event (at the Robin Hood) I decided that this was something that I wanted to partake in.”

She feels passionate about the cause and feels her contribution will be a small one.

“It started out as a little bit of a joke, a couple of friends were like, ‘You will never shave your head,” she said. “And I was like, ‘Why not?’ And a part of me started to become really frustrated because it is going to grow back and I am not sick.

“So in the beginning it was like, ‘I will show them — I will shave my head!’”

She was also moved by a young Bermudian woman who has cancer — Lori Mello, who is suffering from Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. “In May of 2006 I heard her story and it literally brought tears to my eyes because she is only two years younger than myself, and she’s living this happy life, only to be told she’s got this illness that could potentially kill her,” Ms DaCosta said.

“That is when I actually decided I want to do this, I really wanted to do this.”

The funds raised go to the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, which mainly funds cancer research and some of the money raised locally goes to PALS.

Ms DaCosta said she is actually kind of looking forward to her new look. “Well, I’m actually really excited about it, because I think change is good and I have never really experienced something like this,” she said.

“I have been growing it for about a-year-and-a-half, specifically for the event and it is much longer than I would usually have it. So I am looking forward to getting rid of it.”

She feels that, in a sense, she will be joining in solidarity with cancer sufferers.

“I might feel a little bit uncomfortable at first, but I really hope that people donate and also find other ways in which they can help different charitable organisations on the Island — you don’t have to shave your head.”

Miss DaCosta’s hair will go to Locks of Love, which is another charity. Its main function is to make prosthetics/wigs for disadvantaged children with permanent hair loss from alopecia areata, radiation treatments or burns. Hair can be donated to Locks of Love on a year-round basis. While the exercise is about giving, Ms DaCosta said it has certainly been rewarding.

“Going through all of this has made realise how fortunate I am to be a healthy human being who has the energy and the drive to put my efforts into something like this,” she said.

“It has almost been like having a part-time job. I have a goal of (raising) $50,000 and at the moment I am on $18,000. My employers ACE Bermuda have said that they will match the sum or something close to it.

“I am getting closer and closer to my goal. Fifty thousand dollars is a lot of money and is what many people are making on average per year, but this has taught me the true value of what that amount of money really is.”

The public can make donations for Christine DaCosta or other volunteer baldies by visiting www.stbaldricks.org. Click on ‘Participants’ and type in Bermuda or her name.

Christine plots bald plan for charity