Happy St. Baldrick’s Day!

This past Sunday, March 17, the Harbor Crab Co. in Patchogue hosted its second annual St. Baldrick’s Fundraiser. Members of the community came out in support of five local kids and their families who have been impacted by cancer.

The St. Baldrick’s Foundation provides funds for childhood cancer research. The foundation is volunteer and donation-driven. Thirteen shavees volunteered to get their hair buzzed to raise awareness for childhood cancer.

Everyone gathered at the back bar for food, drinks, and music by DJ Salty Jim. Along the windows were poster boards with photos and information about honored guests Christian Henke, Ryan Duffy, Becca Brower, Jakob Brower, and Matthew Lima. People could donate online and participate in raffles with over 70 prizes and a 50/50.

Christian Henke and his mom, Lisa Henke, made the event possible. Twenty-four-year-old Christian was in his junior year of college at SUNY Plattsburgh when he kept getting severe headaches. As time went by, Henke found no relief, which eventually led him to the emergency room, where they found a tumor the size of an apple located in his frontal lobe. He was 21 years old at the time. The continuous support he received from the community inspired him to host the fundraiser. Henke is currently in remission.

“I wanted to use my happy story and how I got through it to bring awareness and raise money for childhood cancer research. It means a lot to me,” Henke said.

Henke chose Harbor Crab Co. to host the event because he knew owner Mark Miller and went to school with his daughters.

“He’s an awesome guy. He does all kinds of fundraisers. We went right to him because he is an expert on all this stuff, and he helps us just blow it up and make it as amazing as it is,” he added.

Lisa Henke shared how her son came to her last year and said he wanted to participate in St. Baldrick’s. Lisa thought her son was looking to volunteer as a shavee and told Christian she would find an event he could attend. However, he actually wanted to host an event of his own. She shared that last year, they raised about $17,000.

She said, “He wanted to take what he’s going through and make a difference for kids like himself so that other kids don’t have to go through what he went through.”

Along with St. Patrick’s Day and the St. Baldrick’s Fundraiser, the Henke family was also celebrating Christian’s recent scan, which came back clear.

“Our hearts are full,” said Lisa.

District 5 councilman Neil Foley was in attendance and took the opportunity to share a few words.

“Living in this area—Bayport, Blue Point, Patchogue, Sayville—this is a community that will embrace you, love you, and fundraise for you. Nobody will support you more than Mark Miller and The Harbor Crab,” he said.

Also in attendance were congressman Andrew Garbarino, Fr. Kevin Smith from Our Lady of The Snow in Blue Point, New York State assemblymen Jarret Gandolfo, and town clerk Kevin LaValle.

The first shavee of the event was Sully Miller, who raised over $2,600 in donations—the most money of all the participants. In between shaves, the honored guests bravely told their stories.

Twenty-year-old Ryan Duffy talked about his battle with testicular cancer, and he is currently in maintenance. Twenty-one-year-old Becca Brower shared her battle with papillary thyroid cancer, and she is currently cancer-free. Becca’s brother, 19-year-old Jakob, spoke about his battle with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, and he is also cancer-free.