A haircut for a cause

For the past several years I have been growing my blonde hair and, like countless others, I made the decision to donate it to a worthy cause. The cause I am speaking of is specifically the creation of human hair wigs. These wigs are then distributed to either woman or children who have a particular ailment (disease) called alopecia where you lose all your hair or, as in most cases, people lose hair from chemotherapy treatment used in fighting cancer. 

For any female of any age the loss of hair can be devastating. In the United States, as well as many other countries, women spend thousands of dollars over their lifetime for the care and beautification of their hair. We put great importance on this particular part of our body. In fact, women have admitted that if they are having a "bad hair day" it effects their mood. 

I decided I would cut my hair on Lag-B'omer, one of the few times between Pesach and Shavuot that one is allowed to cut one’s hair. I did it at Fairy Tales hair salon in Hewlett. A friend of mine, Ashely Kanarek, donated her hair to the beauty company PANTENE. I looked it up on line and learned that they have an association with the American Cancer Society. Both Ashely and I have mothers who are, thankfully, cancer survivors. We learned first hand at a young age the way women we love feel when losing their hair.

My last reason for donating my hair is to encourage both mothers and daughters to consider doing the same. For me, it is both a way to honor family and friends who survived cancer, and memorialize others who bravely lost their battle against such a powerful and malignant disease. I did it in honor of: my mom, Debbie, and in memory of: my grandpas Jack Kreitman and Al Harris, my family friend Jeff Kurtz, Cindy Hirchler and my great grandma Jean Gross and Shirley Gross and the countless others.