| Pathfinders donate hair to disadvantaged young people | | Email | Print |
Created dateAug 12, 2009 Last editAug 12, 2009 at 11:52 PM
by Diane Thurber; Source: NAD Communication, herald@luc.adventist.org
[News]
Hundreds of onlookers streamed by the Locks of Love booth in Hanger B at the International Pathfinder Camporee in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, on Wednesday morning, Aug. 12. Many stopped to look as Janeen Morton, of the Panoka Woodlands Pathfinder club in Panoka, Alberta, sat quietly while two hairdressers cut approximately 12 inches of thick hair from her head. One hairdresser asked Janeen if she was scared, and Janeen smiled and quietly said, “No.”
This is the first time Janeen has cut her hair to donate to Locks of Love, an organization that, according to its Web site, provides hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children in the United States and Canada under age 18 who suffer from long-term medical hair loss from any diagnosis. They do this “to return a sense of self, confidence and normalcy."
Janeen first heard about the Locks of Love program five years ago at the last International Pathfinder Camporee she attended, and she has been growing her hair out for the past year for this occasion. Her mother, Carol Morton, was standing nearby taking pictures as Janeen’s hair was cut and placed in a plastic bag. She said Janeen could hardly wait to cut her hair at the camporee. "She wanted to be able to give her hair to those who don't have any."
Katie Bue of the Gridley Guides Pathfinder club in Gridley, California, grinned as hairdressers cut approximately 12 inches from her hair. She remarked, “It feels good to give it to people who don’t have hair, because I’d hate it if I didn’t have hair.”
Rose Cabello, a retired hairdresser, is coordinator of the Locks of Love program at the camporee. She personally provided bottles of lotion from Bath & Body Works to give to the Pathfinders who donate their hair. The Pathfinders secure their parents' permission to cut their hair beforehand and then sign up for a 30-minute appointment time. Cabello anticipates she and the other hairdressers will collect hair from 55 Pathfinders before the camporee ends.
Leilani Stowell, also a hairdresser and director of the Joshua Wildcats of Joshua, Texas, stepped in to assist. Stowell remarked, “It’s amazing that they want to donate their hair, especially because they’re teenagers. Most teenagers want the perfect style. It’s great they’re servicing others.”
The selfless acts of the young ladies in the Locks of Love booth demonstrate the spirit of many Pathfinders attending the International Pathfinder Camporee who desire to extend the healing touch of Jesus to others each day.
To learn more about the International Pathfinder Camporee, visit www.camporee.org. Information about the Locks of Love program is available at www.locksoflove.org.
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