Pitt students lose their hair in St. Baldrick's fundraiser for childhood cancer research
If Allie Voss liked running her fingers through her boyfriend’s hair, she’s gonna be out of luck for a while.
Her guy is Marko Rudek, 19, a 2024 Penn-Trafford graduate who’s now a sophomore at the University of Pittsburgh. He was among those who got their hair buzzed Sunday in a fundraiser for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation at the William Pitt Union in Oakland.
Rudek, who is studying mechanical engineering, said he had raised $640 from family and friends that will go to the foundation, a charity dedicated to funding childhood cancer research. The organizer was Sydney Duriancik, a Pitt junior hailing from North Apollo. She said the first-time event on the Pitt campus had beaten a $5,000 goal.
Rudek figured he could raise more money by pledging to get his hair chopped off. What he collected in a week was more than he expected.
“I haven’t had hair this short in a long time,” Rudek said. Referring to Voss, he added, “I don’t think she was too thrilled.”
Voss, 20, a physical therapy junior from Green Tree, took a front-row seat and recorded Rudek’s locks being shorn off. She was far from displeased, it turns out.
“It’s OK — it’s for the kids,” she said. “I think he actually looks great.”
Duriancik, 20, is a 2023 Apollo-Ridge graduate studying communication science at Pitt. This fall, she started a St. Baldrick’s chapter inspired by her older brother, Jake Duriancik, who was diagnosed with leukemia when he was 4 years old. Jake, 22, works as a financial analyst for UPMC after graduating from Apollo-Ridge in 2021 and Pitt this year.
He was the first to get buzzed at Sunday’s event.
“This is a good way to give back and help other people,” he said.
Sydney thanked everyone who came out on a Steelers Sunday to raise awareness and funding for cancer research, and to stand in solidarity with kids who don’t have a choice when it comes to losing their hair. Stylists Anna Yourish, from MixxHouse Salon in Ross, and Mariah Malanowski, from Wild Rose Hair Studio in Lawrenceville, did the cutting.
Head-shaving events are a regular fundraiser for St. Baldrick’s, which says that since 2009 it has awarded more than $2.3 million to Pittsburgh-based institutions, including the University of Pittsburgh, to fund childhood cancer research.
Sean Morisoli, 21, a Pitt computer science junior from Downingtown in Chester County, was among Sydney’s friends who volunteered to go under the clippers. He said he raised more than $250.
“If I can do anything to help the cause, I’ll do it,” he said. “At the end of the day, it’s for the kids. They have to do it, so why can’t I?”
Pat Simmons, 23, a fifth-year Pitt industrial engineering student from Shadyside, was something of a veteran, having done head-shaving benefits for St. Baldrick’s when he was in grade school at Keystone Oaks. He had raised nearly $800 from co-workers, family and friends.
“I did buy a beanie in case my head gets cold,” he said, but added that he didn’t bring it with him.
Morisoli did bring a beanie with him. While he said his buzz felt good, he wasn’t planning on keeping it that way.
“I really like my hair,” he said.
Brian C. Rittmeyer, a Pittsburgh native and graduate of Penn State University's Schreyer Honors College, has been with the Trib since December 2000. He can be reached at brittmeyer@triblive.com.
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