Local teens raise over €2k for Pieta House by dyeing their hair

With the hairdressers closed a lot of us are having unusual hair days at the moment, but two local teens decided to put their locks to good use by dyeing them yellow to raise money for the Pieta House charity!

Ferbane's Oisin Fitzgerald (17), a fifth year student in Gallen Community School, and his 15-year-old brother Shane normally take part in Darkness Into Light, the big annual fundraiser for the suicide prevention charity. 

After the cancellation of this year's event, they thought about an alternative way of supporting the charity, and were inspired by a recent 'shave or dye' event organised by Shannonbridge GAA club.

As a result, on Saturday evening last, both had their hair dyed yellow at their home in Ferbane.

BEFORE: Oisin and Shane before they dyed their hair last weekend

Their fundraising effort began in late April, and was hugely successful. Donations poured in over a two-week period, generating a total of €2,290.

On Friday we asked Oisin for his reaction to the amount of money he and his brother have helped to raise.

"It really exceeded our expectations," he said. "We had set (a target of) €200, and we had that raised in a couple of hours, so we put it up to €500 and we had that made in 24 hours. We then put it up to €1,000 and we had that in two days. And it's just been rising ever since."

AFTER: The end result!

Oisin and Shane, and their mother Anna, thanked everyone for their generosity in supporting the fundraising effort.