A BRAVE Okehampton resident will be taking part in a sponsored Shave or No Shave one-women event, to help raise funds for a charity close to her heart.

Karen Hendry, whose locks now measure a whopping 24 inches long, has been growing her hair for 15 years.

Karen is seeking sponsorship as to whether to shave or not shave off her locks —either way, a cancer charity will win.

Karen hopes to make thousands of pounds to donate to Cancer Research: 'I have lost a lot of people to cancer, so I want to raise as much money as possible for all the different types.

'Both my mum and sister had skin cancer and my dad has prostate cancer and has also just had a tumour removed from his mouth.

'I also lost a friend to the disease so you can see why I want to raise as much money as possible.'

Karen said it was when her friend, who has breast cancer, started to lose her hair, that she decided to raise the money: 'When my friend had her hair shaved off because of chemotherapy, I decided it was time to take action.'

Karen said her friend, Sue Wonnacott, a stylist from Mikal's Salon, had offered to shave her hair: 'One of my good friends has jumped at the chance to shave it all off, which I found very amusing.

'She works at Mikal's so I know she knows what she is doing.'

Cancer Research UK carries out world class research to improve their understanding of cancer and find out how to prevent, diagnose and treat the different kinds.

It is the world's leading independent organisation, dedicated to research and almost entirely funded by donations from the public.

More than 45,000 volunteers give their time freely to support Cancer Research UK.

Anyone who wants to sponsor Karen to shave or not shave can do so at the Times office or phone her on 01837 53463. The closing date for sponsors is Tuesday March 31.