Dom Skaro, a current senior at Holy Family, became involved with the St. Baldrick’s Foundation when his brother, Vito, died at the age of two. Vito had medulloblastoma, a rare brain cancer that affects only 350-500 people per year in the United States. Dom’s mom, Nicole, started a Facebook page for Vito while he was battling cancer. The page quickly gained over 20,000 followers from around the world, and people started referring to him as “Valiant Vito.” When Vito passed, Dom wanted to find a way to help, so he turned to The St. Baldrick’s Foundation. St. Baldrick’s supplies wigs for children with cancer and primarily focuses on raising funds for pediatric cancer. While many people simply donate to St. Baldrick’s, others offer their hair to help children in need. Dom started growing out his hair for the first time when his brother was battling medulloblastoma. He grew it for three full years before donating it to be turned into a wig. Then, in 2022, he started growing it out again in memory of his late brother. This time, for two years.  After shaving it for the second time on February 29th, Dom said, “I really like doing it. It always feels good to do, and it’s always good to see my hair fall of my head and know its going to a good place.”

Dom is planning on growing his hair out again in a couple of years for the same cause. If you would like to help those with pediatric cancer, you can donate to The St. Baldrick’s Foundation on their website, www.stbaldricks.org. You can also find a story on Vito made by Kare11 if you search “Valiant Vito” on Google.