Club Mac Hair Design employee and Pivot Point student Bianca Morris, 15, has won the Pride of Australia Child of Courage Award.
Bianca Morris
The Child of Courage award is awarded to a child under the age of 16 who has helped save, or attempted to save, the life of another or overcome personal hardship through determination and strength of character.
It is because of Bianca’s incredible spirit, determination and bravery in the face of adversity that saw her win this award.
Bianca was diagnosed with neroblastoma (an aggressive form of cancer) at just seven months of age and spent the next three years in and out of hospital.
Although now in a wheelchair, this feisty teenager hasn’t let this stop her from pursuing the things she loves such as swimming and dressage. And the medals, competitions and awards she has amassed, speak for themselves.
With the help of her mum, Rani Morris, Bianca organised a fundraiser to establish Bianca’s Foundation for Life, designed to raise funds for the Cure our Kids Charity which supports the oncology unit at The Children’s Hospital, Westmead.
“I know what these kids have to go through and I know how stressful it can be. Not just for the kids, but for the parents and brothers and sisters too. It’s also a financial worry for parents. Setting up this foundation was a way to help alleviate some of these stresses," said Bianca.
This busy teenager is also an employee at Club Mac Hair Design one day per week whilst studying at the Pivot Point Academy. It is her dream to become a fashion designer and based on the creative genes in her family, this goal should certainly be achievable.
Her father, Martin Heaton is a hairdresser and his career has taken him around the world with some of the highlights including winning the silver medal for the World Hair Olympics, being Creative Director for the Super Elite Model Contest by Revlon in Seoul and being the State Chairperson for NSW for the International Hairdressing Society.
Martin is now the owner of Club Mac Hair Design in Beecroft and Erskinville, both La Biosthetique salons.
Of her award win, a surprised Bianca said, “There are so many amazing people who get nominated, I honestly didn’t think I’d be picked."
Judge Megan Gale presented Bianca with the award. With hundreds of amazing children nominated and all with incredible stories, picking a winner was extremely difficult. “It was incredibly inspiring. There are just so many amazing people out there," the supermodel said. But Bianca was a standout winner.
"The fact that Bianca has been so driven to do what makes her happy and to have such a positive effect on people in her life really struck a chord with me," said Megan.
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