For Happy Hair Brush, supporting the McGrath Foundation has always been a personal choice. After experiencing enormous success as a start up business, Jen Harwood, the CEO and Founder of Happy Hair Brush, wanted to partner with an organisation that could use their funds to make a practical and tangible difference. But there was also slightly more to it than that; after seeing the impact that cancer had on her own family, Jen wanted to support other families like hers through their experience with cancer.
Jen’s mother Cath, had cancer for many years and sadly passed away in 2010. Having Multiple Myeloma meant that Cath was constantly undergoing treatment, from chemotherapy to clinical trials. Seeing the way that her mother’s cancer touched the lives of her whole family, especially her father, was a difficult experience that inspired Jen to support the McGrath Foundation.
“My dad also went through that cancer journey every day for 6 and a half years, from being a businessman, then a part time truck driver to being a full time carer. There’s not a day that goes by that he doesn’t miss his Cathleen. And that is the reason we support the McGrath Foundation. There are other women, other mothers and their husbands and families that need support when the mother is dealing with cancer.”
Happy Hair Brush became an official Corporate Partner of the McGrath Foundation early last year and have been committed to raising awareness and funds for the Foundation. Their commitment through their ‘Mothers are Precious’ campaign saw funds from select hairbrushes being dedicated to the McGrath Foundation and encouraging breast health and awareness.
“I know first hand what it is to have a loved one go through the cancer journey. Supporting the McGrath Foundation was a way of paying it forward in cash donation, but also with our brushes, being able to share a brush that wouldn’t hurt patients’ heads and not pull their hair out, or what hair they had left out. My mum Cath would have loved our brushes for that specific reason.”
Now entering the second year of our partnership, we can’t wait to see what’s next for Happy Hair Brush and the McGrath Foundation.