Local locks given for love Local locks given for love (March 18, 2005)

Hair donation will help a sick child feel better
by Rebecca Guyon

Every day, hair stylists sweep the remains of cut hair into the trash. But Lucy Clark, 10, got the idea to put her hair to better use by having it made into a wig for seriously ill children.

"I wanted to help the sick children because they probably feel embarrassed about not having hair, and I wanted to help them not be embarrassed," Lucy said.

Lucy was able to help by donating her hair to Locks of Love, a nonprofit organization that provides such children with custom-made hairpieces free of cost.

Lucy, a fifth-grade student at Fairlands Elementary, first thought of donating to Locks of Love when she saw a picture in the Pleasanton Weekly of a mother/daughter team who had donated their hair together. The girl featured in the article was a 9-year-old student at Mohr Elementary School.

"When she saw the picture, Lucy said, 'I want to do that,' and has been growing her hair ever since," said Polly Clark, Lucy's mother.

Even though Lucy already had long hair, it was a year and a half before she could make the cut because Locks of Love requires all hair donations to be at least 10 inches long. It takes anywhere from six to 10 donated ponytails to make a single hairpiece.

Each hairpiece is made from real human hair and is fitted to the child. These hairpieces have a retail value starting at $3,000. Nearly 1,000 children received hairpieces from Locks of Love last year. Although Locks of Love will accept hair from anyone, most of the donations come from children like Lucy who want to help other children.

Even though Lucy was excited to donate her hair, when the day came she was very nervous and didn't make it to the salon the first time.

"She chickened out once," Polly said. "She did like her hair long, and as the date approached she was too nervous and we had to cancel."

Lucy scheduled a second appointment a few months after the first one, and this time she made it to the salon despite her trepidation.

"I was so nervous I couldn't eat my breakfast that morning," Lucy said. "But I knew my hair was going to be great and I was doing it for a good cause."

Her hair was cut by her mother's stylist of 18 years, Christy Potap, at Garret & Company in downtown Pleasanton.

"This time she was ready," Polly said. "When she did it she felt a sense of freedom and felt good about what she did."

After cutting the hair, Lucy and Polly mailed it the next day to Locks of Love. Due to financial and privacy concerns, Locks of Love cannot connect donors with the child who receives a specific hairpiece, but they do receive a certificate acknowledging their donation.

"We do think about it sometimes and wonder if her hair has been made into a wig yet," Polly said.

Now that Lucy has gone through the process, she says she looks forward to growing her hair out again and making another donation.

"I think I will do it again because I like the way my hair looks and I really like to help out."

Visit the Locks of Love Web site at www.locksoflove.org.

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