Chop for Charity

About a week ago, I received an email from a girl I went to high school with, regarding an idea for a website dedeicated to women with long hair. She was asking for advice on how to style it, salons to cut it, etc. Last week, my hair measured 30 inches long (down around my waist), so I felt very qualified to answer her little questionnaire. I added a little addendum to her questionnaire, saying that she should include information about donating hair on her website. I was a little surprised when she emailed me back and said that she would never donate her hair. As of this week, I have donated my hair three times (and my hair is now closer to 10 inches long, instead of 30,) and it is always so worth it. Yeah, its a pain to wash and blow dry really really long hair, and its a bit of a shock when it gets cut, but why not? You get to experience life with short hair and life with long hair, so you can experience styles from all spectrums of length, and know that you are doing something good at the same time. Its not a huge lifestyle change or anything, and its something that most people can do. I can say for myself that I will continue to donate my hair every two or three years (yes, the turnaround can be that long), for as long as possible. Its something that is so easy to do, and requires so little extra effort to do, and it is such a good thing to do. The two organizations that I have donated to are locks of love and wigs for kids, organizations which supply wigs for kids who have cancer, alopeciata, and other diseases that cause hair loss. Their websites outline exactly how the wigs are made from your donations, and include stories form kids who have received them. Its worthwhile to check out the sites, even if you don't plan to donate your hair. You can always spread the word to someone who will. When I was in tenth grade, I went to a new school and met two or three girls who were in the process of growing their hair out to donate at the end of the year. I already had somewhat long hair, so on a whim, I decided to join them. It was that simple the first time. And I repeated the process two years later, and now two and a half years after that. I would definitely encourage everyone to at least think about it, if not actually do it. Its such a great cause, and so easy to do.

www.locksoflove.org
www.wigsforkids.org