Sisters donate long locks to national children's charity

Tuesday, June 24, 2003

They might look like ordinary teenagers, but sisters Keila Ferree, 18, and Molly Ferree, 13, spent part of Saturday afternoon giving an extraordinary gift. "My hair is so thick," said Molly, sitting pretty at Magic Mirror and fingering her new, shoulder-length hairdo. "My sister Jessica heard about this charity and said I should donate my hair." Molly and Keila had almost waist-length hair. Now, they're each donating a ten-inch ponytail to Locks of Love to provide custom-fit hair pieces for financially disadvantaged children who have experienced medical hair loss. In the commercial world, custom hairpieces start at $3,000 retail, but Locks of Love provides the hairpieces free, or on a sliding scale for some families. The not-for-profit organization looks for all colors of hair from men and women of all ages. Each hairpiece is hand-assembled, requires 10 to 15 donated ponytails, and takes up to four months to create. Eighty percent of the hair donated comes from children who want to help other children, and most of the hairpieces go to girls. Many of the children who donate their hair send notes along with the gift to the children who will receive it. Stylists Gayneita Shaw and Terri Wolfe, who gave the sisters their beautiful new styles, said the hair donated to Locks of Love must be at least 10 inches in length, and the sisters easily had that much to give. Shorter hair is welcomed but is sold to help offset the costs of the not-for-profit organization's expenses.

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