Every kid, and many adults, love a silly hat - they just need an excuse to wear one!

Join the Silly Hat School Challenge and support stomach cancer research whilst engaging the kids at your school and having fun! 

This challenge is as simple as hosting a 'Silly Hat' day at your school as a 'gold coin' fundraiser, with donations supporting research in to new treatments for stomach cancer. Of course you can extend on this and other ideas could be to hold a 'silly hat' parade or even set up a photo booth to get the kids involved in a fun way!

To get involved CLICK HERE to download a flyer and form for you and your school.

After seeking approval and engagement of the school via the Principal or appropriate channels, please return the form to info@gicancer.org.au and a specific fundraising page will be set up for your school. If you would like to have the school logo displayed please also send through a high res jpg version of the correct logo with the form.

This initiative aims to raise much needed funds for new treatments in to a disease that affects over 2,000 Australians every year, of which only 550 (28%) are likely to survive beyond 5-years.

Why the Silly Hat for Matt Challenge?

The challenge was started by Trine Simpson to honour her husband Matt, who lost his battle at just 40 years of age. Matt was a big kid at heart and had a love for silly hats - wearing them at any and every opportunity. With two young sons, Trine is particularly driven to find better solutions for the future!

Stomach cancer is considered to be a rare cancer but it also has very low survival rates. Less than 10% of people diagnosed with linitis plastica, a rare form of stomach cancer, survive beyond 5 years. In comparison the 5-year survival rates for people with breast, prostate cancers are over 90%.

Lack of research, late diagnosis, low awareness of symptoms, limited funding and lack of treatment options all play a part in explaining why so many people, like Matt Simpson, die of stomach cancer. This challenge will raise funds for stomach cancer research through the GI Cancer Institute, a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to improving the health and quality of lives of patients with Gastro-Intestinal (GI) cancer by developing and conducting clinical trials.

All donations raised will be dedicated specifically to the GI Cancer Institute’s stomach cancer research programme. All donations (over $2) are tax-deductible.

Thanks so much for your support!

#sillyhatformatt #linitisplastica #stomachcancerawareness #gutsychallenge