Locks of Love

Many have shown interest in Locks of Love and some wonder exactly what the organization does and how it uses the hair people donate. There is a wonderful documentary about this that I will try to find and post, but til then:

In a nutshell:
Locks of love is a NGO that provides wigs to kids suffering from long term medical hair loss from things like cancer and other diseases. Their mission (from their website) is to restore a sense of self, confidence, and  normalcy to children suffering from hair loss by utilizing donated ponytails (like the ones my sister and I donated) to provide a high quality prosthetic to children. The children receive the wig free of charge or on a sliding scale, based on need.

Anyway, if you want to see what they do in action, there is a very nice documentary on HBO called: Locks of Love: The Kindest Cut. Here is the link:

 http://www.hbofamily.com/apps/schedule/ScheduleServlet?ACTION_DETAIL=DETAIL&FOCUS_ID=618249&CHANNEL=302

I will post a copy of our certificate when we receive it.

The website goes on to say:

Benefits To Children The children who receive these hairpieces have lost more than their hair; they suffer from a loss of self. Many children have been teased by classmates and/or embarrassed by the attention they receive because of their hair loss. They often will withdraw from normal childhood activities such as swimming, going to the mall or even playing with their friends. While wearing a hairpiece is certainly not a cure for these children, it can help restore some of the normalcy to their everyday lives that most of us take for granted. It is our goal to help provide a foundation on which they can begin to rebuild their self-esteem. (isnt that the sweetest thing- Sonia's input here!). Why We Are Needed There are several problems facing children who suffer long-term medical hair loss. Most wigs sold by retailers are made to fit adult heads, and are much too big for children to wear. They often require the use of tape or glue to keep them from falling off, and these adhesives can burn or irritate the scalp. Often, the styles of adult wigs are not age-appropriate and synthetic wigs can mat and frizz with excessive styling. The hair prosthetics Locks of Love provides are custom-made from donated ponytails for each child’s head. They retail between $3,500 to $6,000. The hairpiece forms a vacuum seal, like a suction cup, and does not require the use of tape or glue. Only the wearer of the hairpiece may remove it, by breaking the vacuum seal at the temples. Children can dismiss insecurities about classmates pulling off their hairpiece, or losing it at recess. They can swim, shower and do gymnastics – in short, they can be kids again. Each hairpiece is made from real human hair, and arrives long, so the recipient may style it to fit their face.