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Fifteen-year-old Diana Gil said goodbye to her long-time locks last week, watching large sections lopped off from a head of hair she’s been growing out for half her life.
“I’m sad to see it go,” she said just before sitting down for the most drastic haircut she’s ever had. While maybe a little nervous, she had no last-minute second thoughts.
Diana is donating her hair to a group called Angel Hair For Kids, which provides high-quality wigs to underprivileged Canadian children who have lost their own hair through chemotherapy, radiation treatment, burns or other medical conditions. These kinds of wigs typically cost thousands of dollars.
Diana said she wanted to support the organization because she knows how cruel some kids and teenagers can be to one another. She said she felt bad for young people who would have endure bullying over their appearance while undergoing serious medical treatments that are stressful enough on their own.
She also has a personal connection to cancer as her grandmother, who lives in Korea, is currently battling the disease.
Diana had to make the decision to donate her hair long ago, growing it out long enough and resisting the urge to dye it, as there are fairly stringent conditions for the type of hair that can be used to make wigs.
She said it seems like she’s been growing it out “forever,” but in reality it’s been about seven or eight years since she’s had anything more than a trim at the Jasper salon she’s been attending for as long as she can remember, Hair on Earth.
She winced a little as the first cut was made, as did hairdresser Jaye Green and Diana’s mom, Jennifer Gil. But before long she settled in to the chair, texting friends while Jaye continued to cut and Jennifer collected and prepared the hair to be packaged and sent away.
While personally proud of Diana’s donation, Jennifer said her daughter’s actions are just one example of teenage generosity that often goes unnoticed.
“I think teenagers do learn from adults, and Jasper is an incredibly generous town,” Jennifer said. |
