Maia Alderson-Muir will never forget it because it was the day she lost her little brother Jay to suicide, at just 22 years old.
"So I’ve chosen to shave my head on October 1 — which is a Wednesday.
"It’s symbolic and personal to me."
The 26-year-old said it was nearly two years since it happened, but the experience of losing someone so close was still "deeply painful and personal".
And sadly, it is a story that so many other people have experienced, and will continue to experience.
Miss Alderson-Muir said grief was different for everyone, and shaving her head was just one of the ways that she thought might help her personally, while potentially helping others.
She aimed to raise money for the Life Matters Suicide Prevention Trust, while encouraging people to have conversations about mental health and suicide.
New Zealand had some of the worst mental health and suicide statistics of any developed country, she said.
"Culturally, we still hold huge stigmas when it comes to talking about mental health and suicide.
"This is especially true for men and young men.
"My main goal is to highlight the fact that there are support services out there that are working really hard to take care of people in our communities, and that they are available to people.
"I know that sometimes when you’re in those kind of distressed situations, it’s hard to see where to get help, so highlighting that is my main goal."
She said she had not taken the head-shaving initiative lightly.
"I looked it up on Google to see how long it will take my hair to grow back.
"Apparently it only grows six inches in a year, so it’ll take a couple of years to grow back.
"I thought about it carefully before I committed to doing this. I can deal with it."
Post shave, she was adamant she would not be wearing any wigs.
"But I will be wearing beanies for a while, to keep my head warm, and then sun hats in summer, because I’m quite pale.
"I’ll have fun with some of the hairstyles for sure, while it grows back.
"Luckily, I don’t have any weddings or functions planned over the next few years — at least not my own wedding.
"That’s definitely not in the books," she said.
• To donate, visit givealittle.co.nz/fundraiser/shaving-my-head-because-my-brothers-dead
