Recognizing that September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, we want to highlight the exceptional work done by Saint Baldrick's. Each year they bring the community together to raise money for childhood cancer treatment and research. This year, the Saint Baldrick's event in Eldred raised close to $8,000. In the years that the St. Baldrick's Foundation has been in existence, they've raised some $279 million nationwide.

In the United States, a child is diagnosed with cancer every two minutes. One in five won't survive, and those who do often suffer from the long-term effects of treatments that have weighed heavily on their developing bodies.

St. Baldrick's believes that kids are special and while a cancer diagnosis may be severe, they still deserve to act like kids by having fun, being carefree and even a little goofy.

The volunteers not only raise money to help fund treatment and research, but they give hope to the most vulnerable patients who are fighting for their lives. Volunteers shave their heads in solidarity with cancer patients who typically lose their hair during treatment. This simple act lets them know that, far from being alone, they have an entire community of support standing behind them.

But who is St. Baldrick? Are they the patron saint of shaved heads? Not quite. The first St. Baldrick's event was held during a Saint Patrick's day party at Jim Brady's pub in Manhattan nearly 20 years ago. Reinsurance executives Tim Kenny, John Bender and Eda Mcdonnell started with the goal of shaving 17 heads and raising $17,000. Instead they shaved 19 heads and raised some $104,000 that was donated to fund the research of the Children's Oncology Group.

According to the St. Baldrick's Foundation, childhood cancer research is incredibly underfunded, with only 4 percent of government funding solely dedicated to childhood cancer research. Since the St. Baldrick's Foundation has stepped in to help fill that gap, they've become the biggest funder of childhood cancer research grants second only to the United States Government.

For a nationwide foundation, we're always impressed by the power of St. Baldrick's to bring local communities together. Whether they're first time participants or returning volunteers, everyone involved is there to support a great cause. Oftentimes volunteers participate to show support for a close friend or relative who is fighting cancer. This small act of empathy not only helps fund research grants that could one day find a cure, but it let's patients and their families know that we stand with them.