With a mullet and a mission, 12-year-old Carter Slapp is using his hairdo to raise money for the Black Dog Institute.
The Leonay local was inspired to fundraise for the mental health organisation after his family lost a loved one to mental illness.
“We made some very dear friends through caravaning and going on trips,” explained Carter’s mum, Renee Slapp.
“We just pulled up next to these amazing people at South West Rocks and they became like family. We had several holidays together over Christmas and Easter.”
One member of that family was Caleb, who loved fishing and heading out for a day on the boat. He lost his life when he was 18.
“It impacted our family quite a lot I think, and Carter being the beautiful human that he is, he doesn’t want other families to hurt like Caleb’s family does,” Renee said.
“So, he decided to grow his hair like Caleb, and we decided to fundraise and chop it off.”
Carter has set a fundraising goal of $10,000 for the Black Dog Institute and hopes to raise the money before his haircut on July 19.
“That was the company that helped them after he died, so we thought we’d fundraise for them,” Carter said.
The young man has raised just over $2,000 already with the tally climbing.
“We’ve just started and we’re really hoping the local community will get behind Carter,” Renee stated.
“Our local club Leonay has donated their function room for the event.
“Now we’re just hoping he can raise the funds for such a good cause.”
Caleb’s mother, father and sister will travel here from Queensland for the big chop, and Carter has asked Caleb’s father Gavin to do the honour of cutting his mop.
Renee said she was proud of her son’s connection to the cause.
“We are super proud of Carter. At such a young age, he’s so empathetic to people’s causes,” Renee gushed.
“He’s so kind and it’s amazing. If anyone could get behind the cause, that would be lovely.”
The family are also hoping to donate the hair to Wigs4Kids in a donation double whammy, depending on the length and quality at the time of the chop.
Donate to Carter’s fundraiser online at http://www.teamblackdog.org.au/fundraisers/shannonslapp.
Ally Hall
Ally Hall joined the Weekender in 2024, and focuses on entertainment and community stories. She's a graduate of the University of South Australia and has previously worked as a Video Journalist with Southern Cross Austereo and as a News Reader with Australian Radio Network.