Tom Serratore is looking for the next Tom Serratore.
Back in 2007, the Tinley Park native was a freshman soccer and baseball player at Andrew High School, where he took part in a St. Baldrick’s event. At the time, St. Baldrick’s was new in the Chicago area and becoming wildly popular.
The idea is simple. People raise money for childhood cancer research by getting their heads shaved at events usually held around St. Patrick’s Day. Serratore and nine others lost their hair at an assembly at the Thunderbolts’ athletic field.
“I grew my hair out to be pretty bushy,” Serratore recalled. “It was pretty long. It was windy and my hair was blowing all over the place. I felt really proud that as a freshman, I was one of the top 10 fundraisers for this.
“All of my friends and peers got to watch me do this. Of course, everyone wants to touch your head and those are the core memories that I have.”
And it hasn’t stopped. Although St. Baldrick’s events are not as huge in the Chicago area as they were back then, they are still happening across the world. Over the span of 18 years, Serratore has not only gotten 20 head shaves, he has helped start up St. Baldrick’s events in various cities in the United States.
In mid-November, Serratore was named to the St. Baldrick’s Foundation board of directors. Now the Texas Christian University women’s soccer associate head coach, he said he hopes to use the platform to get young men and women involved with St. Baldrick’s events and share the same passion he has had over the years.
“How do we get the next generation of me?” Serratore said. “I started as a freshman in high school and I have been doing it for almost 20 years. Where is the next group of the kids who are already in high school or college now who are going to want to do this for 20 years?
“Hopefully we can try to inspire kids like that. That is probably my No. 1 major goal. How do we find the young kids and the next generation to put in the time and effort and help spread the word about St. Baldrick’s?”
District 230 Superintendent Robert Nolting has no doubts that Serratore can spread that word. Nolting was the principal at Andrew when Serratore was in school, and was impressed with not only his love for St. Baldrick’s but for other causes including the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
“He’s one of the best,” Nolting said. “He was a great leader at Andrew. When I first met him, it was like he was 10 years ahead of his time. He had an ability to articulate what was important to him. He had an ability to influence other kids to do things for others that they wouldn’t necessarily think of doing.”
“He’s always willing to help people with unfortunate circumstances.”
Serratore has nothing but praise for his time at Andrew and said the school made him what he is today.
But some of his best work for the foundation came after he left the school.
He played soccer at Valparaiso University and was all ready for his dome to get shaved again, but there was a problem.
“There was no event there, and I really wanted to keep doing it,” he said. “I went to the coaches on the soccer team and asked them if it was something we could do. They said yes, and we organized an event at a local barber shop.”
Tinley Park native Tom Serratore shows off his shaved head earlier this year during a St. Baldrick’s fundraiser in Fort Worth, Texas. (Melissa Triebwasser)
Serratore said 30 people participated and the first event raised a few thousand dollars. By the time he moved on, it blossomed to more than 100 participants raising $90,000.
He has organized events in Eugene, Oregon, and his current home, Fort Worth, Texas.
“Every place I’ve gone, I have continually started events at those places,” he said. “Some of those places, St. Baldrick’s hadn’t been known.”
And his crusade all started at Andrew.
“I heard about this crazy head-shaving event and I thought it would be the cool thing to do,” Serratore said. “One of my friends at the time had leukemia so this was a way to honor him at the time.
“I was playing soccer. I was playing baseball. I was doing all of the activities. It wasn’t like I could go to the hospital every single day so this was one way I could honor him and at Andrew it was a very big deal.”
To him, it still is.
“I’m obviously thrilled to be a part of it and to help the foundation at another level,” Serratore said. “I have a lot of experience in creating events and finding young people to get excited about raising money and doing things for child cancer research.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
