BROOKSVILLE, Fla. -- Several Hernando County deputies are coming together to support a detention center nurse battling cancer. They wanted to show her she's not alone.
- Debra Dolby has worked at Hernando Detention Center since 2006
- Dolby diagnosed with stage 3C ovarian cancer in November 2017
- Some deputies shaved their heads to show support
Family is the first thing Debra Dolby sees when she looks at the photos taken at the Hernando County Detention Center showing her surrounded by several deputies with bald heads.
It was her idea to get a bunch of the deputies together.
"I said, 'Hey, it would be really cool for myself personally to motivate you to have something to look at, like a picture of a bunch of people with bald heads, so you know you're not alone in the world with a bald head," Dolby said.
Some of the deputies even shaved their heads moments before the photos were taken to show their support for Dolby, who was diagnosed with stage 3C ovarian cancer last November.
She said it hasn't been an easy fight, but knowing her family at the detention center has her back makes it that much easier.
"It's how you get your strength and your courage, and this is a badge of courage," Dolby explained. "Being bald is hard for a woman, not hard for a man, but it's how you get your power."
The deputies said participating in the photos was a no-brainer. Some have worked with Dolby, an employee at the detention center since 2006, for more than a decade.
"She's just a fun person that gets down to business and calls them like she sees them," Programs Deputy William Ingersoll said.
"We wanted to demonstrate that we're part of the same team, part of the same unit, and we wanted to show a little solidarity," Classification Sgt. Dan Carriveau added.
Dolby hopes the photos will help inspire others battling an illness to keep fighting.
"There's a lot of diseases that people need motivation for, and if I can give them just a little bit, share my story, then I'm happy," she said.