Sisters donate their hair to Locks of Love program

LINDSAY — Two Strathmore sisters had never had a haircut in their lives — until Saturday afternoon. That's when they finally cut their hair to donate to Locks of Love.

Denise Chapa, 12, and Rebecca Chapa, 10, both students at Sunnyside Elementary in Strathmore, had hair long enough to sit on prior to the cut.

“They had a deal with their dad that they would never cut it until it grew down to their ankles,” their mother, Tawnya Chapa, said. “But that will never happen. Because they keep growing.”

The girls’ hair length became a concern when both of them started having frequent headaches.

“We decided it was time to cut it,” Chapa said. “We talked about it and because we have had a lot of people in our family with cancer, we decided to donate the hair to Locks of Love.”

The girls said they lost a 7-year-old cousin to cancer. In addition, a lot of family members shaved their heads to support an aunt in Texas who lost her hair after developing cancer.

The two sisters headed Saturday to Virginia’s Hair Studio in Lindsay, where stylist Estella Macias has been cutting family members' hair for the past 29 years.

“This is a good way for them to give back,” Tawnya Chapa said.

And after cutting off 12 to 15 inches of hair each, the girls still had hair that fell half way down their backs.

“It took a long time to brush my hair,” Rebecca said. “I had to get up at 6 a.m. just to get my hair brushed and done.”

As the Chapa sisters cut their hair in Lindsay, stylist Celeste Hernandez of Fresno was at Wish Upon A Star’s Shave the Brave event at Plaza Park in Visalia — also cutting long hair for Locks of Love.

“Locks of Love provides hair for children suffering from long-term medical hair loss,” Hernandez said. “Many families can’t afford the [prosthetic] hair pieces, which can cost anywhere from $3,500 to $6,000. With these, the children can take showers, go swimming and feel secure.”

Locks of Love is a public non-profit organization that provides hair pieces to financially disadvantaged children. The donated hair creates the highest quality hair prosthetics to return a sense of self, confidence and normalcy to children suffering from hair loss.

-- Contact Esther Avila at 784-5000, Ext. 1047, or eavila@portervillerecorder.com.