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Speaker 1: Want to step aside from that conversation for a while

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Speaker 1: and talk about the things we learn from teachers outside

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Speaker 1: of the classroom, because sometimes the most powerful lessons that

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Speaker 1: they impart don't happen in front of the chalkboard or

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Speaker 1: on the iPad. They happen through example. And at a

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Speaker 1: recent school assembly at Redham House in Constantia, a foundation

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Speaker 1: phased teacher named Kelly Owen made the kind of statement,

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Speaker 1: a deeply personal gesture, but one which I think symbolized

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Speaker 1: that kind of teaching and learning moment for her class.

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Speaker 1: Outside of the classroom, she shaved off her hair in

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Speaker 1: front of the entire school to help raise funds for

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Speaker 1: the Cancer Association. And it wasn't just about fundraising. It

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Speaker 1: was also, for Kelly, a personal statement honoring colleagues, parents

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Speaker 1: and friends affected by cancer and supporting those who are

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Speaker 1: currently fighting the disease. And what she did is set

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Speaker 1: up a back a Buddy page called how much is

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Speaker 1: your Teacher's Hair Worth? Well, to date, it's already raised

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Speaker 1: more than forty thousand rands. It turns out your teacher's

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Speaker 1: hair is worth a great deal and still counting. But

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Speaker 1: I suspet that even more valuable than the funds raised.

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Speaker 1: Was the message imparted to those kids watching. Kelly is

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Speaker 1: with me on the line, and I know it's breakup day, Kelly,

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Speaker 1: So thanks for making time to chat to us when

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Speaker 1: we could be fleeing for the hills. Welcome to the show.

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Speaker 2: Oh, thank you for birth, Thank you.

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Speaker 1: It wasn't just a fundraising stunt. I believe this came

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Speaker 1: from very personal, lived experience, not just for you, but

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Speaker 1: for your school community. Do you want to tell us

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Speaker 1: about the bigger context?

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Speaker 2: Yeah? Or you know. I did it this thirteen years

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Speaker 2: ago with a bunch of colleagues at Atlantic Seaward when

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Speaker 2: one of our close colleagues was diagnosed and eight of

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Speaker 2: us stood in solidarity and showed who that we really cared.

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Speaker 2: And this year it just seemed right. Our school has

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Speaker 2: suffered some severe losses of staff and of parents, and

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Speaker 2: we've got a number of families who are journeying on

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Speaker 2: their cancer journey at the moment, and so it just

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Speaker 2: felt right, and it was something I was going to

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Speaker 2: do in solidarity and in memory of people close to me,

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Speaker 2: and so I thought, you know what, I have an

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Speaker 2: opportunity to make a difference and to show children one

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Speaker 2: of our school values of being courageous and having courage

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Speaker 2: and just showing what it means to deeply care and

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Speaker 2: have that powerful impact, to show people it's not just

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Speaker 2: my hair that to me doesn't really mean anything. It's

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Speaker 2: more the movement of or why I did it, And

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Speaker 2: so we can show people by our actions sometimes are

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Speaker 2: louder than words.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, Kelly, I mean you're a foundation phased teachers are

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Speaker 1: We're talking about very young children. Obviously, the bonus is

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Speaker 1: they're very impressionable children who are probably going to remember

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Speaker 1: this moment for the rest of their lives. But it's

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Speaker 1: also quite a tough conversation to have with young children,

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Speaker 1: for whom grappling with concepts like disease and mortality is challenging.

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Speaker 1: How did you explain to your Well, firstly, did you

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Speaker 1: explain in advance what you were doing. Did you have

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Speaker 1: a conversation with them?

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Speaker 2: Yes, so we did have a chat in our foundation

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Speaker 2: phase a family and to say, obviously this is not

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Speaker 2: something that you will want to run out and do

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Speaker 2: yourself at home. Please, this is a serious thoughts has

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Speaker 2: gone behind this, and I'm prepared to do that, so

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Speaker 2: please don't frighten your moms and dads. But I think

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Speaker 2: our children know they have seen the loss of teachers

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Speaker 2: close to them, and they have journeyed alongside their friends

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Speaker 2: whose parents are going through their cancer journey as well.

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Speaker 2: So sadly it's not something unfamiliar to our school. So

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Speaker 2: it was a way to say, you know what, all

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Speaker 2: of your moms and dads and friends and family who

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Speaker 2: are either on this journey or have been on this journey,

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Speaker 2: we are honoring them and we can raise funds to

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Speaker 2: help the broader community. As one of our school mottos,

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Speaker 2: we shall give back, And it's a wonderful way to

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Speaker 2: live that and to just show that something. Small donations

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Speaker 2: add up, and it's been really overwhelming seeing how much

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Speaker 2: support we've gained, and it's just awesome knowing that at

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Speaker 2: the end of the month we get to hand over

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Speaker 2: a large sum of money that is going to make

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Speaker 2: such a huge difference to so many different lives.

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Speaker 1: I mean, it is fantastic that you've already reached forty thousand,

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Speaker 1: Rad Kelly. As a matter of interest, have those been

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Speaker 1: mainly small contributions from individual pupils or families or friends.

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Speaker 2: And family and school community? So I think, yeah, there's

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Speaker 2: a large amount of obviously our school support, and then

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Speaker 2: just how people have networked and sent the link out

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Speaker 2: to friends and family and they have shown support as well.

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Speaker 2: And you're every little bit from your fifty rand makes

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Speaker 2: a difference. So it's been amazing to see. It's been

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Speaker 2: quite overwhelming reading some of the messages that's been taken heart.

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Speaker 2: Really I'm not doing it for me, so it's been

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Speaker 2: quite overwhelming in that sense. The support that I am

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Speaker 2: personally getting was a little bit overwhelming, but it's been amazing.

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Speaker 2: It's been an amazing journey in the last two weeks.

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Speaker 1: So Kelly, let me just say first of all, if

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Speaker 1: anybody comes in midway to this conversation and it's wondering

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Speaker 1: who you're listening to, Kelly Owen is a Foundation phased teacher,

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Speaker 1: so for those who don't know the current stages, those

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Speaker 1: are the little's of the school at primary school level.

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Speaker 1: She teaches at rhdham House, Constantia, and made the decision

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Speaker 1: to publicly shave off her hair in the school assembly

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Speaker 1: as part of a fundraising campaign for the Cancer Foundation

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Speaker 1: and as a gesture of solidarity with members of their

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Speaker 1: school community who've been impacted by cancer. Kelly, As you said,

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Speaker 1: the money is lovely and gratifying and absolutely wonderful that

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Speaker 1: people have contributed, but the knowledge that the message has

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Speaker 1: sunk home is what really makes the story special. Do

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Speaker 1: you want to tell us a little bit more about

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Speaker 1: what the what have said to you, about what they're

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Speaker 1: thinking about what you did.

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Speaker 2: Oh, it's been really gorgeous. I mean, obviously with the

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Speaker 2: foundation phase it's a different it's a different level. And

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Speaker 2: just getting all these little ones coming and saying thank

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Speaker 2: you for being brave and I appreciate and seeing living

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Speaker 2: that value of our school of being courageous has been

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Speaker 2: really awesome to see how they can understand that bravery

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Speaker 2: isn't just jumping into the swimming pool. Bravery isn't just

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Speaker 2: doing something new or challenging. It's having the courage to

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Speaker 2: be vulnerable. And I think shaving your hair makes you

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Speaker 2: incredibly vulnerable. So teaching in the mat has been wonderful

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Speaker 2: for them to see and listening to all those little

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Speaker 2: pieces of coming up to me and saying, wow, that's

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Speaker 2: been really awesome seeing how that little message has sent in.

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Speaker 2: On Wednesday when we did it, one of the teachers

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Speaker 2: with the announcement had said that this is something that

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Speaker 2: she is never witnessed before, and so to say to

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Speaker 2: the children that this is not something that usually happens,

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Speaker 2: this is not something you will remember this forever.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, do you think you might be seeing some new

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Speaker 1: haircuts coming back from the school holidays at the end

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Speaker 1: of night.

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Speaker 2: Don't blame me, don't blame me, But often we are

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Speaker 2: the We've got the broad shoulders. We'll take it. It

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Speaker 2: is because of me.

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Speaker 1: I'm sorry, you know, I'm asking because Killy. I'm particularly

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Speaker 1: some of the older pupils in the school, for whom

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Speaker 1: perhaps you know, this might lead to it a deeper

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Speaker 1: thought process beyond what you know. And as you said,

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Speaker 1: it's it's a different kind of communication to foundation phase,

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Speaker 1: to the older primary school, and obviously to older pupils

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Speaker 1: beyond that. But you know, it strikes me that some

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Speaker 1: of them might well go, you know what, if she

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Speaker 1: can do it, i can too, And I'll pledge some

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Speaker 1: money and and and join the campaign. And one hopes

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Speaker 1: that that will land well and with heartfelt intent in

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Speaker 1: their homes if they articulate that wish. But I'm thinking

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Speaker 1: it could make for a failure music.

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Speaker 2: The cancer Association does regular drives at various shopping malls,

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Speaker 2: and I'm sure there's going to be a lot more

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Speaker 2: spray painted heads. And for those who aren't brave enough

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Speaker 2: to shave, put those streaks of color in and make

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Speaker 2: your impression and your mark of solidarity and support. So

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Speaker 2: I would like to think that there will be more

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Speaker 2: families going and having their hair spread if they're not

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Speaker 2: brave enough to have it shaved. But I think just

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Speaker 2: seeing how our community has raised the money on the

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Speaker 2: back of body, we have had so many families step

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Speaker 2: forward and go wow, here, yeah, we in solidarity to

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Speaker 2: those who are on the journey.

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Speaker 1: And if anybody listening to this interview wants to do

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Speaker 1: the same. That Backer Buddy page is still up and

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Speaker 1: you are searching for the campaign called how much is

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Speaker 1: your Teacher's Hair Worth? And obviously any contribution is welcome.

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Speaker 1: It all goes to the Cancer Association. Kelly, how long

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Speaker 1: are you keeping that campaign open until?

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Speaker 2: I think it's probably going to be running until after

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Speaker 2: the school holidays, Okay, Okay, so it is all the

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Speaker 2: beginning of until April into April.

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Speaker 1: Okay, So do you go into back a buddy if

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Speaker 1: you'd like to make a donation. Jillian writing in to say,

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Speaker 1: what a wonderful gesture. Was your hair long enough to donate?

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Speaker 1: She wants to know so.

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Speaker 2: The hairdresser who shaved my head to collect it all.

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Speaker 2: We're not sure if it's long enough to put away

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Speaker 2: just to my shoulders, but apparently they can use it

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Speaker 2: for fillers in weaves, okay, And so it wasn't thrown away.

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Speaker 2: It will be put to good use. Sadly, it wasn't

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Speaker 2: long enough to plat and make a full wig, but

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Speaker 2: it will be sent away and if they choose to

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Speaker 2: use it, they've got it.

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Speaker 1: And that's fantastic as well, because that is another aspect

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Speaker 1: of these conversations that is so important in terms of

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Speaker 1: what it means to the cancer survivor who's living with

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Speaker 1: the hair loss that goes with it. It can be

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Speaker 1: so hugely important. It's a wonderful gesture, Kelly, and more importantly,

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Speaker 1: I think it's a wonderful learning moment for your pupils

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Speaker 1: with so much depth to it. Thank you for doing it,

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Speaker 1: but thanks also for making time to chat to us

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Speaker 1: when you should be putting your feet up and starting

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Speaker 1: your school holidays, and our very best wishes to you

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Speaker 1: and also for the success the ongoing success I should

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Speaker 1: say of the fundraising campaign, thank you.

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Speaker 2: I appreciate your tom Thank you.

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Speaker 1: Kelly Owen speaking to us the Foundation Phase teacher at

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Speaker 1: Redham House, Constantia