As I'm sure you all have noticed by now, the internet is once again swarming with pink everywhere. Pink shirts, pink hair bows, pink cups, and even pink socks are being bought left and right in support of October being Breast Cancer Awareness month. What a lot of you don't know, unfortunately, is that some of the items you're purchasing in hopes of supporting an amazing cause are actually not really doing much because some of the organizations that are being "donated" to are for-profit.
Anyway, that's why when it comes to supporting the people afflicted with cancer I prefer to donate my hair. I've done it twice now; once in March of 2013 and again this past July. Both times I donated were in honor of strong, courageous women who fought their breast cancer valiantly; one whom passed just 3 weeks after my donation in her name, and the other who just kicked the cancer's butt for the second time.
I can't say that all of the organizations you donate your hair to will be 100% perfect. There are likely going to be some things about each organization you may not like, but for me the pros vastly outweigh the cons.
I personally like to donate to Pantene Beautiful Lengths. It is a company that works with the American Cancer Society in order to provide 100% free wigs to women over the age of 21 who have lost their hair due to their breast cancer treatments. That is it. The wigs aren't for alopecia patients. They aren't for women who have suffer from the repercussions of burns. They go directly to women who have lost their hair to their breast cancer treatments. They are specifically for grown women. The wigs don't go to children under 21 years of age. The main reason I choose PBL each time is because it's the cause that I feel is closest to my heart. I've known people who have endured breast cancer, and I feel it's my way of honoring their exceptionally strong spirits.
Pantene Beautiful Lengths has a couple of requirements that must be met in order to donate to them; which is what I meant previously when I said that you may not like each organization 100% of the time. Their requirements for donation include:
• 8 inches minimum requirement
• Must be clean and dry upon sending in a ponytail or braid
• No dyes, bleaches, or any other chemical treatments
• No more than 5% gray hair in the tail
I'm lucky because I have 100% virgin hair. I've never had a single chemical treatment placed on my head, and as long as I can I plan on keeping it that way so that I can continue to donate to PBL.
There are a lot of other companies you can donate to, but you have to make sure you do your research before you do. There are some organizations that have to charge the patients for their wigs or hair systems. It is a completely understandable thing for them to do so because manufacturing wigs are extremely expensive. Other companies might not be solely for cancer patients. There are numerous ways a person can lose their hair, and a lot of those are covered by the other organizations I'm referring to.
The other companies that I'm talking about are typically for children either 21 years and younger or 18 years and younger. Please check these amazing organizations as well:
• Locks of Love -- http://www.locksoflove.org/
• Wigs For Kids -- http://www.wigsforkids.org/
• Wigs 4 Kids -- http://www.wigs4kids.org/
• Children With Hair Loss -- http://www.childrenwithhairloss.us/
