Floyd's 99 Fundraiser at Palmer Place Raises Over $20K for St. Baldrick's

Bald heads were abound at on Thursday evening at a fundraiser for St. Baldrick's Foundation sponsored by and the local firefighter's union.

Kids ran wild as servers carried teetering trays of potatoes and corned beef overhead (they did an amazing job) and adults sampled green beer and whiskey. The staff at Floyd's 99 buzzed the night away, adding even more shaved heads to the mix while patrons danced to an Irish music group playing classics like Whiskey in the Jar.

"We thought it would be a great event to get involved with and bring the community together for a good cause," said Michelle Zaper, Floyd's 99 manager.

Zaper, along with La Grange firefighter and Floyd's 99 customer Brian Cramer, decided to work together to put on a St. Baldrick's fundraiser in La Grange this year.

"I did something last year, but I wanted to do it more local," Cramer said.

With the help of firemen in the La Grange Firefighter's Association union, the crew came together to ask friends and family to make donations and raise awareness about St. Baldrick's funding of research to fight children's cancer.

"There was a little healthy competition between [the firefighters]," Cramer said. "But it's for a great cause and a lot of them have children, so it's personal too."

Cramer said that La Grange Fire Chief Bill Bryzgalski was behind them 100 percent and agreed to let some of the men on active duty on Thursday night drop by to get their heads shaved as well.

La Grange village board member Jim Palermo was in attendance with his family as well. Palmero's daughter Katie was diagnosed with cancer last June, and has done quite a bit of fundraising for St. Baldrick's herself, including .

"People in La Grange have been very generous and supportive of our family," Jim Palermo said of seeing so many people from town at the event. "It's amazing and heartwarming, and we could not have done this without all the support."

According to Zaper, the event raised over $19,000 before for St. Baldrick's before Thursday night's event. The final total was $21,745 after donation from last night were included. Zaper said they hoped to hit at least $10,000 by the night of the event and was thrilled by the turn out and for exceeding their donation goal.

"It's been quite a night," she said with a sigh.

We'll check back in with Zaper later today for the final total, but for now, check out our pictures and add your own!