AN Okehampton woman has had her head shaved in a bid to raise money for Hospiscare — the charity that supported her cousin in the final hours before she died.

Sally Burt, who aimed to raise £1,000, had her locks chopped off last week at the London Inn, Okehampton

Sally’s cousin and dear friend, Shelly Clarke, passed away in 2015 at the age of 46 after battling breast cancer.

Sally has been raising money for Hospiscare — the charity which runs the hospice where Shelly spent her last hours after her cancer continued to spread.

Sally explained that Shelly, who owned Cheznous Nail Boutique, was incredibly determined and kept her nail salon open right up until she was physically too sick to work.

‘Shelly was a fighter,’ said Sally. ‘She was brave, witty and such a strong women. She was always full of energy and would help anyone in any way she could. I am shaving my hair off to raise funds to help those like her who are fighting cancer.

‘Some people have said “you’re brave to shave your hair off” but I don’t see it as brave. The people going through chemo are the ones I consider to be brave. I am lucky that I have the choice about my hair, where others unfortunately don’t have the choice and lose it due to treatment.

‘I’m not bothered about how I will look with no hair and I’m sure if Shelly was still with us she’d be saying “go on Sal”.

‘If shaving my hair off helps to support someone going through a really difficult time then I am more than happy to do it.’

With donations still coming in, Sally said she had definitely raised more than £1,000.

Sally said: ‘I’ve been so surprised by people's generosity and would like to thank everyone who has donated so far. I originally set a target of £300 but would really like to raise £1,000.

‘All of the money will be given to Hospiscare and although Shelly was only at the hospice for a short time the staff took good care of her. They also offered lots of support to her mum and dad.

‘Raising money by shaving my head is my family’s way of saying thank you to the hospice for all the support they provided Shelly and the family.’

Sally expressed thanks to Aimee from Eclipse hair salon and Simon and Karla Chudleigh of the London Inn. She wished to thank her brother, Louis Sparling, and friends Rachel Hawkings and Amy Cooper, who were on hand at the London Inn with collection buckets. She also wanted to thank her partner Dave and their children for all of their love and support and Sandy Simmons of Bedknobs and Broomsticks in Sourton for her generous support.

Pictures by James Bird.