Alaskan beauty queen goes bald for cancer charity

Washington, Mar 17 (ANI): Alaskan beauty queen Debbe Ebben, who is in the running for Miss Alaska, has shaved off her head to raise money for a cancer foundation.

The reigning Miss Chugiak-Eagle River has raised more than 4,000 dollars for children's cancer research for the St Baldrick's Foundation, and last weekend, she delivered on a promise to people who pledged by allowing her brown tresses to be buzzed off.

She's proud of raising money, but the underlying message is for children who lose their hair because of cancer treatments.

"You're proving it's OK to be bald, regardless of whether you chose to be or not," CBS News quoted Ebben as saying.

The 23-year-old stands 5-feet-4 inches tall, and her official talent is playing the piano. She has been entering pageants affiliated with Miss Alaska since 2007 and used scholarship money to attend the University of Alaska Fairbanks for four years.

She was motivated to get involved with St Baldrick's by another beauty queen, Miss Virginia 2008 Tara Wheeler.

Near the end of her reign, Wheeler decided to raise 50,000 dollars for St Baldrick's and pledged to become a "shavee" if she reached her goal.

"She inspired me to get involved with them.

"She did it kind of on the side after her reign. I decided to make it my entire personal platform," Ebben said.

She has not yet decided whether to grow her hair out as the Miss Alaska Pageant approaches in June, with the chance to compete in the Miss America Pageant. She said that she may rock the current hairdo and doesn't think stubble will hurt her chances.

Ebben's experience, along with her work with Children's Miracle Network, a Miss America cause, has shaped more than her hair.

Instead of engineering, she's now studying to be a "child life specialist" working with children in hospitals. (ANI)