Source: Burlington County Times
When Kayla Dauria decided to donate her hair to benefit cancer patients, she knew there had to be more students at Seneca High School wanting to make the cut. And why not bring the haircuts to them?
She teamed up with her friend Katelyn Dever, who had donated her hair three times, to host an event benefiting Pantene Beautiful Lengths, a program that partners with the American Cancer Society to make and distribute free wigs made of real hair to cancer patients.
On Tuesday, two dozen girls and one boy sat on stools in the school library, giggling with nervousness as stylists from Salon 541 in Medford chopped a minimum of 8 inches off their hair. Stylists donated their time on the salon’s day off for the cause.
“Hair is easy to give. It’s not money. It’s not time,” Kayla said.
Students squealed as they watched friends chop off their long ponytails, cheering, “It looks so cute!” and “You look beautiful!” Some girls who hadn’t registered for haircuts were inspired to join in after watching friends.
Kayla and Katelyn both had 8 inches cut off.
“Everybody has it, so it’s something we can all do easily,” Katelyn said. “It’s so cool to see everyone come together.”
It was Kayla’s first time donating, and getting so much hair cut, she was a little nervous. But from watching members of her own family battle cancer, she knew how much her small sacrifice will mean to someone else.
“I’ve seen how it can affect people in their lives when they lose their hair,” she said. “Hair is something I have and take for granted every day, and I can help someone else out and make their lives a little brighter.”
Senior Tanner George was the only boy to donate. He agreed to buzz his brown, curly hair if Kayla and Katelyn could raise enough money from students to fill a large glass jar. The girls collected money in the cafeteria at lunchtime and in the hallways until the jar was overflowing with about $100 for the American Cancer Society.
“For the girls and them donating their hair, it gives other women a chance to feel like themselves and put on a nice wig,” Tanner said. “It’s just a good cause.”
Kayla and Katelyn, both seniors, want to make hair donation an annual event at Seneca. They are already helping to train juniors to take the reins next year.
“We hope it becomes bigger each year,” Kayla said.