"Locks Of
Love" Changes Lives
Of Children With Hair Loss
Hairstylist Terri Underwood cuts 10 inches of hair from
Locks of Love donor Leilani Hayes. The hair
will be used to help children suffering from severe hair
loss.
November 11,
2008
Total hair loss can be
traumatic for an adult, but can be absolutely devastating
for a child. Locks of Love, of West Palm Beach,
Florida, is devoted to helping children suffering
from medical hair loss regain their self esteem and
confidence by providing hair prostheses to financially
disadvantaged children 18 and younger in the United States
and Canada.
The
hairpieces provided are custom-made from donated ponytails
and would retail between $3,500 and $6,000 if bought from a
for profit organization. Locks of Love provides
them for free or on a sliding scale, based on financial
need.
Each
prosthesis requires between 6 and 10 ponytails and each
strand of hair is hand injected into the silicone base up to
150,000 times. Once the prostheses are provided, each child
may style it to compliment their facial features. The
hairpiece forms a vacuum seal, like a suction cup, and does
not require the use of tape or glue. To date, over
2,000 children have been helped and Locks of Love has
recipients in all 50 states and Canada.
Donating hair
for the hairpieces is relatively easy, as Arab teenager
Leilani Hayes discovered when she decided to change her own
hairstyle recently. Although aware of the Locks of
Love program, she was unsure how to go about being a
donor and the requirements, but she quickly found the needed
information, instructions, and necessary forms on the
organization's website.
With the
necessary information in hand it was crunch time, or should we
say "cutting time". Even though there was more than a
little trepidation at losing more than 10 inches of hair that
had taken years to grow, the decision was made and the appointed
time set.
With the thick hair
gathered into the required ponytail and with scissors ready,
Unique Hair Creations owner Terri Underwood paused for the final
ok. "Are you sure about this?" Underwood asks. After
a moment of hesitation the answer comes back, "Yes". In
less than two minutes Leilani is holding the ponytail in her
hand.
Because it normally takes
6 to 10 ponytails for each prosthesis and because of privacy
issues, the Locks of Love organization does not tell the
donor who is receiving the hair. However, Leilani has
already received a thank you and acknowledgment that her hair
has been accepted and will be used in the production of a
prosthesis. The entire process of production and fitting
for each hairpiece takes 4-6 months.
When a child is accepted
into the program, a molding kit and instructional DVD are sent
to show parents how to make a plaster cast mold of the child's
head. From this mold, a plastic fitting cap is made. This custom
fitting cap is what provides the vacuum seal function. The child
is able to choose the color and length of the hair they would
like as well as the skin tone color of the silicone base.
Children ages 6 to 18 can reapply for a new prosthesis every 18
months.
In cases where children are experiencing short term hair loss,
usually due to chemotherapy treatments, they require a more
immediate answer to their needs. These recipients would receive
a synthetic hairpiece in lieu of a prosthesis. These synthetic
hairpieces are made especially for children and can be provided
quickly and worn during re-growth. The production time of a
prosthesis is prohibitive in meeting these immediate needs, and
also cannot be worn effectively once hair begins to re-grow.
With children under six, Locks of Love provides synthetic
hairpieces because they will outgrow their custom vacuum fitted
hairpiece very quickly.
To be considered for use
in a prosthetic, the donated hair must be at least 10 inches in
length. Shorter hair can be donated but it is sold to
other organizations and the money raised by the sale is used to
help pay expenses of the organization.
Tax deductible financial
donations to assist in the program may be sent to 234 Southern
Blvd. West Palm Beach, FL 33405.
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