Plucky 15 year old Gemma Tutin has a chilly new look and it is all for the benefit of other needy children.  The Ellis Guildford pupil, and daughter of a regular at the Horse and Jockey pub in Basford, has had all her lustrous dark brown hair cut off to raise money for the Starlight Children’s Foundation.  Gemma has suffered from a  serious lung condition since she was six and carries vital oxygen on her wheelchair at all times.

Mum Lorraine Maring, 14 year old brother Thomas, Gemma Tutin and Horse and Jockey manager Marie Frost

In a ceremony attended by family, friends, and pub regulars, Gemma sat quietly as her mum, Lorraine Maring, took scissors and shears to Gemma’s silken locks.  Gemma was as pleased as punch with the finished dome.  “It was all my idea to do something silly and something to raise money for other children. I think it’s lucky it’s coming up to Spring soon, so I won’t get too cold,” she said.  “I’ve warned my friends at school that I’ll look odd and they’ve promised not to laugh. They think I’m slightly mad.”

Mum gets to work

Starlight has the aim of brightening the lives of seriously and terminally ill children by granting once-in-a-life experiences and providing entertainment in hospitals and hospices across the UK.  The activities are aimed at distracting children from pain, fear and isolation and over 500,000 are helped each year.

Though Gemma has not personally benefitted from the charity’s work, she says she really understands why the charity’s work is so important for children in hospital.  Donations are being taken at the Horse and Jockey pub.

Pub regulars, friends and family rally round the hairless heroine