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Mick Jagger opined “Childhood living is easy to do” in The Rolling Stones’ 1971 song “Wild Horses.” As reality often counters the performer’s sentiment, Ciara Stith and Ali Jennings recently resolved to remedy troubling circumstances for downtrodden children and young adults.
The ladies donated their tresses to Locks of Love, a West Palm Beach, Fla.-based nonprofit that crafts hairpieces for individuals dealing with long-term medical hair loss. Their offerings further the entity’s 15-year mission that has assisted 3,000 North American figures 21 and under.
Stith, a stylist at Couture Hair Studio, 740 South St., used last year’s volunteer experience at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia to inspire her desire to have her mane make a difference.
“I worked with 3- to 15-year-olds to prepare them for their prom,” the Maple Shade, N.J. resident said last week of the facility’s annual acknowledgment of patients’ inner and outer beauty. “I cut hair but I had to shave off so much, too.”
Most of the recipients of her CHOP chops are suffering from alopecia areata, a non-fatal condition that causes hair loss from some or all areas of the body, most frequently from the scalp. Though the problem affects between 0.1 and 0.2 percent of the population, according to Global Alopecia Mission, which researches the condition, knowing even one child has a confidence crisis led Stith to act. An intern at Northern Liberties’ 3BG Marketing, she asked the company to support the philanthropic event at her nine-month-old salon. Approval granted, she transplanted her humanitarian attitude from CHOP’s oncology unit, where she had learned of Locks of Love, to her chair.
“I had wondered what I could do to give back,” the fourth-year professional said. “I love children and just wanted to help them.”
Stith relayed a story of a girl whose decreased self-esteem made her help more worthwhile. Such tales commonly touch Locks of Love communications director Lauren Kukkamaa, whose employer, along with aiding alopecia subjects, mitigates situations for radiation therapy and chemotherapy cases, burn and trauma victims and other dermatological and genetic abnormality holders.
“So many children abandon activities when they lose their hair,” she said of the Locks of Love emphasis on preserving normalcy for American and Canadian clients. “We see ourselves as a wonderful tool to build lives up again. There is nothing better than receiving letters and photos that reveal newfound confidence.”
Operating since 1997, Kukkamaa’s Sunshine State corporation fashions synthetic hairpieces to children younger than 6, as their rapid growth alters their head size. For those ages 6 to 21, it constructs custom, vacuum-fit hair prosthetics. It benefits girls and boys, with the former constituting the majority of the conferees. Eager to aid anyone, Stith showed her dedication by acting as a giver before adopting her more common role as a cutter.
Locks of Love’s donation guidelines reveal a minimum contribution is 10 inches. Colored and permed hair are permitted, but bleached and dreadlocked hair are forbidden. Donors must send their clippings either in a braid or a ponytail, with six to 10 examples of the latter making one hairpiece.
“We are always in need of hair,” Kukkamaa said, adding the beneficiaries can reapply for new confidence boosters every 18 months.
Stith smiled as a colleague snipped her ponytail, hoping for an afternoon of similar scissor feats.
“Even one client would make me happy,” she said, “because I know today will change someone’s life.”
Sara Morris gave Couture an excited patron April 16. A college classmate of Stith, she found the prospect of being a morale builder for a child too heartening to overlook.
“The whole idea struck me as really cool,” the Springfield inhabitant said.
Needing a haircut anyway, Morris gladly gave 10 inches and beamed over the chance to provide help, especially aware her tresses may serve a fellow female.
“Being a girl, I could not imagine not having hair,” she said. “I’m just thinking about how having hair, even if it’s not her own, will brighten a girl’s life.”
Her procedure complete, Morris watched as Stith packaged the offering. Both know even though one could easily count the number of hairs inside, nobody can tabulate the amount of joy they will bring.
“I love being able to help,” Stith, who may plan more events, said. “It can be so easy to make people feel good.”
Jennings has likewise enjoyed advocating for Locks of Love, which has received recognition from the Local Independent Charities of America as one of the country’s top bestowers. A resident of the 1700 block of Moore Street, she learned of Locks of Love years ago.
“I had really long hair, and it was time for a change,” the Newbold dweller said.
Mustering the courage, she made a 14-inch donation Oct. 16, 2005. Giving her follicles the requisite time to flourish again, Jennings decided to end her hiatus and visited a Pennsport salon March 30 for another cut. Her stylist placed her hair in several ponytails to create more length from the front, resulting in a 15-inch sample.
“I mailed in the hair myself by following the guidelines on the Locks of Love website,” Jennings said of placing her contribution in a zipper storage bag within a padded envelope.
She aspires to give every few years to maintain her affinity for helping children thrive. Kukkamaa noted Locks of Love has recipients in all 50 states and across Canada, so Jennings knows she can count herself among those with compassionate hearts.
“I think it’s a great organization to help give children the confidence they need to live a normal life and be strong through their struggle with long-term medical hair loss,” she said. “It’s just hair but it helps kids be kids again.”
Locks of Love does not maintain a list of participating salons, yet, as has been the case with Jennings, interested parties can send in hair themselves. The organization provides pieces and repairs free of charge or on a sliding scale depending on an in-need child’s family finances. Short-term hair loss sufferers can also call upon Locks of Love for help.
“People often see us as helping only cancer patients,” Kukkamaa said. “We want people to see us as much more.”
Its mission statement tabs Locks of Love as a restorative agent in helping children “to face the world and their peers.” Stith is thrilled to have aided the quest.
“Every strand matters,” she said.
For more information, visit .
Contact Staff Writer Joseph Myers at jmyers@southphillyreview.com or ext. 124.
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