For the ninth year in a row, local pub owner Tommy Schafer hosted the St. Baldrick's Day fundraiser, a day when people pledge to shave their heads for a charity that funds childhood cancer research.
On St. Baldrick's Day, shavees get sponsors to donate money for them to go bald for the charity. Schafer said that people running the St. Baldrick's Foundation event on Saturday at in Port Jefferson village told him that over 120 people had their heads shaved that day, raising over $50,000 for the charity.
As of the writing of this article, the fundrasing page for Schafer's restaurant says 76 registered shavees participated to raise just over $20,000 but a St. Baldrick's Foundation representative said over the phone that checks and cash donated on the day of the event may not have hit the website yet.
Nine years ago Schafer hosted his first St. Baldrick's Day fundraiser at his pub, Tommy’s Place in Port Jefferson. As the years went by the event bacame too big for that location and he moved it to his larger Rocky Point pub. The event grew even larger and luckily Schafer's new restaurant is big enough to host his growing fundraiser.
Shafer said that the bar in the restaurant bearing his name took in over $2,100 during the event and that he donated every cent to the foundation.
"They were very excited about it," he said. "It was the first time we broke $2,000."
