AFTER taking insult at a passing comment his wife made about his haircut, Col Sommerfeld decided to get the ultimate revenge. He decided to grow his hair – into dreadlocks. And then die them hot pink.
Ironically, the Mackay based bricklayer’s infamous dreadlocks ended up helping raise a massive $24,000 for the McGrath Foundation.
Col pledged to shave off his dreads after his friend Natalie was diagnosed with breast cancer at 30 years old. Together, they teamed up with another Mackay identity, James “Yogi” Roger, to create the “Tradies Go Pink” campaign. They held fundraisers, harassed bar patrons for donations, approached local businesses, and ended up with the entire Mackay community supporting them.
“We ended up with so many people wanting to help, that in the end we were just completely overwhelmed. It was amazing. Here we were, just two tradie blokes, with a whole community standing behind us,” said Col.
Col caught our eye at the McGrath Foundation (how could he not with all that hair?!) and has since been announced as the McGrath Foundation’s first Man Month Ambassador. Since getting on board with the campaign, Col has spoken of his hopes that men across Australia will stand up with the Foundation this April.
During his fundraising efforts Col decided to make the trip to the Oncology unit at a Queensland Hospital. After getting over the shock of his pink mane of dreadlocks, the nurses took Col on a tour where he met with two Queensland based McGrath Breast Care Nurses, Lynda Campbell and Margaret Stapleton who provide vital care and support for families experiencing breast cancer.
“Meeting those two women had a really profound effect on me. They were like people’s aunties, and I just have so much respect for not only those two caring ladies, but all McGrath Breast Care Nurses. They absolutely deserve recognition for the amazing work they do in communities all around Australia,” Col said.
“As men we have to realise we can play a huge role in helping the women we love be breast aware and know the signs. Whether it’s your mother, daughter, sister, wife, girlfriend, auntie, or just a friend, we need to show our support and play an active role against breast cancer.
The McGrath Foundation’s Man Month campaign is a great way to get the fellas on board with an issue that often men don’t like to talk about. It’s important to get the message out there, whether you cut your dreads off like me or simply sign up to the campaign, that the women in your lives need to be breast aware,” said Col.
Find out more about the McGrath Foundations campaign here www.mcgrathfoundation.com.au/manmonth
Source: McGrath Foundation
