Four-year-old Victor Ferguson isn’t noticing the late May heat as much as he did last year. After growing his hair for two years, Ferguson had it cut in an epic haircut a few months ago, all in the name of charity.
Victor had been growing his hair for two years so he could donate the locks to be made into a wig for someone with cancer. Victor was born with Cystic Fibrosis and the disease impacts his life every day, but for two years he had a goal of helping others.
When he was sitting at Hone & Strope Barber Co. just before the big cut, he said he was nervous and excited, but knew why he wanted to do it.
“I want to help a boy with cancer,” he said.
Two years ago the family found out a friend’s son was diagnosed with cancer and it sparked questions from Victor about why the boy was losing his hair. Since then, he had not had a haircut, and despite some teasing, kept his resolve.
He was joined by his father, Jason.
“I told him if he did it, I would do it too, so he didn’t have to do it alone,” Jason said. “He’s been told he looks like a girl and flip-flopped about getting it cut, but then he remembered all of his favourite superheroes who have long hair.”
As first-time parents when they received news of Victor’s diagnosis two weeks after birth, the Fergusons had little time to process the information and start a lifestyle different from most new parents. Victor was not keeping food in his system and was not thriving, so they were sent to Victoria for testing.
“The next morning we were told it was Cystic Fibrosis,” said Jason’s wife Jenny. “We started on all the medication and got a big binder of information. It was a lot to take in and it was a big learning curve. We stayed there for a week and met a great team of doctors and dietitians.”
Luckily, there were few complications and Victor started gaining weight. He was monitored to make sure liver disease will be prevented and since then, the main thing has been to keep his immune system strong. The family has to remain cautious about being around anyone with a cold and make a habit of using anti-bacterial wipes on anything that might have germs. If Victor contracted a virus, he would have a hard time getting over it, so avoidance has been the best solution.
They found a close-knit support system through the Kinsmen Club. Since Cystic Fibrosis is one of the service group’s main charities, the Fergusons were approached with an offer of help four years ago.
“They let us know that they supported Cystic Fibrosis as a national program and we were not under any obligation to go to any meetings,” Jason said. “But I wanted to meet them and help so I joined as a member.”
Two years ago he became president of the club. It was then that the couple had their second child, a daughter, who also has Cystic Fibrosis.
“Cystic Fibrosis puts a big barrier on things socially because we can’t be around anyone with a communicable disease, but the club is nice because there are a lot of kids and it is a tight-knit group so we feel comfortable asking if anyone is sick. Victor has always been an old soul and he loves helping others so he always asks to come help (with Kinsmen Club events).”
Growing out his hair has made Jason a target for some ribbing in his position with the Kinsmen, but he said the group knew why he and Victor were doing it.
“The group thinks it’s awesome,” he said. “They have been bugging me and gave me a bit of grief, but they knew what it was for.”
He said the support has been overwhelming. Not only are they donating hair for wigs, the family has been fundraising for the Canadian Cancer Society and have so far raised more than $2,600.
“I put up a goal of $5,000 just to shoot for the moon, but we’ll be happy with as much as we can get,” Jason said.
Donations can still be made on the fundraising page at https://www.gofundme.com/sweet-child-of-mine.
