VISALIA — Porterville police officers and Explorers took it all off Saturday — their hair, that is — as they joined hundreds of other emergency personnel from across the region in Wish Upon A Star’s fifth annual Shave the Brave event at Plaza Park in Visalia.

“All of the money taken in will help grant wishes for children with life-threatening medical conditions,” Carmen Perez, executive director of California law enforcement’s Wish Upon A Star program, said. “Our goal is $150,000. Last year we raised $100,000. Every year it keeps increasing.”

Perez said the day looked promising. As of 11 a.m., more than $55,000 had been raised. And by the end of the day, more than $80,000 was raised for Wish Upon A Star.

First on the chopping block Saturday morning were 19 Porterville Police Department officers and Explorers.

Porterville Police Chief Chuck McMillan sat in one of the hot seats, waiting for the blade to hit.

“We have 30 to 40 people all together shaving their heads. Many of our guys had to work so we set up a makeshift shaving station for them and they were shaved this morning before starting work,” McMillan said. “We raised about $6,700 so far but we can get more if Dempsie would give up his mustache.”

Officer Chris Dempsie sat a few feet away, smiling and occasionally shaking his head — no amount of pestering was going to convince him to remove his mustache.

“We raised $7,000 last year but it’s hard with the economy,” McMillan said. “Still, all of this money came out of Porterville. It shows what kind of dedicated people we have in our community. We get more and more people each year coming out to shave their heads.”

Taking pictures of the officers was PPD crime prevention officer Jodi Harper. She laughed as the officers tried to convince her to cut and shave off her long hair.

“That’s my husband on the phone,” Harper said while laughing. “He keeps calling me and telling me ‘Don’t do it.’”

As the men, and a few women, left the barber chairs, they were handed sunscreen lotion and a Wish Upon A Star baseball cap.

On the second round of shavings, City of Lindsay city clerk and finance director Kenny Walker looked nervous as the shaver dropped large amounts of hair into his lap.

“I’ve never done this before,” Walker said. “This is my first time ever to shave my head.”

Walker also decided to shave his beard — and a mustache that he has had since he was 16 years old.

“The eyebrows stay,” he said firmly as people around him tried to convince him to get them shaved.

“Yes, I regret it,” he joked after he was shaved. “No, I don’t. It’s for a good cause. I raised $2,500 — almost enough for one wish. It takes about $3,000 to make a child’s wish come true.”

Saturday's Shave the Brave event brought together police officers, firemen, military and ambulance personnel from Tulare, Kings, Fresno, Madera and Kern counties — all to support Wish Upon A Star.

Wish Upon A Star services are available to children in California, ages 3 to 18. In their 26 years of service, more than 1,800 wishes have been granted.

-- Contact Esther Avila at 784-5000, Ext. 1047, or eavila@portervillerecorder.com.