By Alana Mitchelson
A BUNYIP man has raised $8000 for the Stillbirth Foundation after shaving off his red-dyed bushy beard this weekend.
A close friend of Adam Smith’s recently lost his beautiful baby girl Evie two days after due date.
Every day six babies are stillborn in Australia, and in 40 per cent of cases, the cause of death is unknown.
It is far more common than SIDS, yet is rarely spoken about.
“We were all expecting to see him come home with a little baby. It really hit a nerve for me because I’m a dad,” Adam said.
“Stillbirth Foundation definitely doesn’t get enough help. It’s one of the lesser known charities and they need more support to research why this happens and how they can prevent it.
“I think part of the lack of awareness is because it’s an issue that is very hard to discuss, it’s not a nice subject to talk about it.”
Adam held a family fun day fund-raiser for the Stillbirth Foundation at the Bunyip Soccer Club grounds on Saturday 10 September with a jumping castle, Bunyip CFA firetrucks for the kids, a mechanical bull and silent auctions.
“I haven’t grown a beard for about 15 years, so it felt very weird. A lot of people had suggested growing a beard to raise awareness and money, and I thought it was a good idea,“ Adam said.
“We were expecting maybe $3000 so to raise $8000 was really huge. We had a great turnout despite the weather, but luckily the rain held off.”
Adam said he hoped to continue to raise awareness for stillbirth and to possibly hold an annual event.
