Matildas star Aivi Luik will shave her head after the friendly with New Zealand tonight in a bid to raise $30,000 for brain tumour research following her brother’s diagnosis.
Matildas midfielder Aivi Luik will shave her head on Tuesday night in a bid to help raise $30,000 for brain tumour research following her brother’s devastating diagnosis.
Luik, 37, set herself a goal of raising $30,000 for the Mark Hughes foundation by the end of the friendly series with New Zealand – which will conclude in Canberra tonight.
The family were devastated to learn that Luik’s youngest sibling Noa Kerwick, 27, had been diagnosed with Oligodendrogliomam, a brain tumour.
“As you can imagine, this news has been very difficult for him and our family,” Luik said. “While they were able to remove 90 per cent of it in surgery, there was a small part that remains.
“That part is Stage Three which means he has to undergo both radiation and chemotherapy.
“It’s been a tough time for him and there’s been times on the phone when I am overseas that he’s been quiet and it’s just not like him. It breaks my heart to hear him like that.”
Luik, who plays professional football for Pomigliano in Italy has had to find other ways to support her brother.
Her plan is to fundraise as much as possible, setting herself a target of $30,000 but it won’t just be for Noa.
So far she has raised close to $23,000.
“I see how this has impacted my family and this is a chance to shine the spotlight and assist other that suffer because of this disease; whether it’s themselves, a family member or friend. At the end of the day, the patient suffers but all of the loved ones around them suffer too,” Luik said.
If the fundraising target is met Luik will shave her head on the pitch post-match.
Friend and former club teammate and Football Fern Rebekah Stott is poised to do the honours with the clippers.
“I thought it’d be a great idea for her to be the one to shave my head. Stotty is a great friend and watching her battle Hodgkin’s lymphoma with so much poise was inspiring, and I couldn’t think of a better way to honour the fight of both Noa and Stotty,” Luik said.
“If you have the means to and this touches your heart and if you can spare any amount of money, that would be amazing. It would mean so much to me and to my whole family. I want to see Noa laughing and joking again as much as he was before.”
To donate to the cause visit the Mark Hughes Foundation.
Matildas play New Zealand in Canberra at 7.45pm.
Originally published as Matildas v New Zealand friendly result: Aivi Luik’s money-raising move for brain tumour research
