At just four years of age, Zahriya Leaoasoma lost her mother to breast cancer.
Now at 25, just one year shy of the age her mother died, Zahriya has decided to commemorate her mum in an emotional way – by shaving her head to raise funds for breast cancer research.
Hair is considered tapu, or sacred, in Polynesian culture, and Zahriya, who holds the title of Miss Samoa Victoria, wants to use her platform to raise as much awareness as she can within the Pasifika community.
“I’m feeling so overwhelmed, but definitely empowered having a bald head,” she told SBS News on Saturday after her…
