8 Reputed Hair Donation Charities You Should Know | Full List with Details
Around 1.9 million people are diagnosed with cancer every year. Chemotherapy is the major reason for hair loss apart from burns, alopecia, and trichotillomania. Losing hair removes the hope of recovery and frightens the possibility that one may never look the same.
However, that is a debatable opinion; wigs have helped people gain confidence in getting back on terms with their future. Many charities accept hair based on certain criteria, after which they are made into wigs and distributed to their applicants for free.
Here are 8 Best Hair Donation Organizations and Charities:
1. Wigs for Kids
A Therapist, Jeffrey Paul, founded Wigs for Kids to help those suffering from medical issues who lose their hair. Hair stylists and donors are bought together to help children facing burns, chemotherapy, alopecia, trichotillomania, or other medical issues which result in hair loss.
Wigs for Kids has been operating for 40 years, reaching close to 10,000 recipients and their families through their initiative. Their ongoing “10,000 Hearts Campaign” embodies the efforts to continue providing wigs at no cost to children facing hair loss due to medical conditions, showcasing the impactful journey of this charity and its substantial reach in aiding young individuals regain confidence and normalcy amidst challenging health issues.
Their wigs are made from 150,000 strands of natural hair; since this process is time-consuming and expensive, they highly encourage individuals to donate to their charity. Their hair donors receive multiple support materials like video training, stories of kids, timely updates, tips, and positive impact stories.
Wigs for Kids accepts hair donations of 12 inches or longer to make a worthwhile impact. They rely on experts to perform this job, or one can find the exact ways to cut their hair from an outside salon per this charity’s requirements.
Charity Navigator rates them a perfect 4-star rating for their excellent community values and welcoming environment for the kids.
2. Locks of Love
They help financially disadvantaged children suffering from long-term medical issues resulting in severe hair loss. As a charity, they purchase custom prostheses and provide them for free to their applicants.
They do not discriminate in the donation or while accepting colored or grey hair. Donors do have an option of sponsoring children below the age of 6 for $1,250.
Locks of Love has been a pivotal player in offering hair replacement solutions to children and young adults under 21 with medical hair loss. They utilize donated hair to craft high-quality hair prosthetics, boosting the self-esteem and confidence of recipients. Over the years, their initiative has garnered widespread support, aiding countless individuals in regaining a sense of normalcy amidst their medical challenges
While Charity Navigator rates them a 4-star, GuideStar handed them a Silver Transparency seal for its updated financial audits.
3. Hair we Share
Based in New York with over 5 decades of experience, they are a second-generation family-owned charity founded in 2014. They provide human hair wigs free of cost to anyone who is unable to afford it.
Individuals suffering from cancer, burns, head trauma, accidents, and other issues that have resulted in their hair loss can apply for a wig on their website. A donation of $145 can cover all their manufacturing expenses for a single wig to help children and adults cope with loss.
Hair We Share crafts custom wigs for individuals facing medical hair loss, and tracks donated hair to the wig recipient, creating a unique connection between donors and recipients. They have a “Track My Ponytail” program which adds a personal touch to the hair donation process.
They accept hair donations of 12 inches or more regardless of hair color or bleach. Once the hair is appropriately packed as per their requirements one can submit an online donation form and send the package on the address mentioned on their website. Charity Navigator rates them a 3 out of 4 stars
4. Children with Hair Loss
They provide human hair replacements to children and young adults facing medical illnesses at zero cost. Every year several children lose their hair due to alopecia, trichotillomania, burns, and other issues.
Every donation has helped make a difference for 571 people. Since 2000 CWHL has provided more than 7,000 hair replacement and aftercare kits for free. Under their Great Cut program of 2019, over 1,300 hair donors, volunteers, stylists, and guests came from across the world to Boston.
They provide free human hair replacements to children and young adults facing medically-related hair loss. Since 2000, they’ve helped thousands regain self-esteem and confidence. They have a unique angle of not charging recipients for hair replacements.
This program broke the Guinness World Record for the most hair donated to a single charity within a day. Charity Navigator rates them an 85% score.
5. Maggie’s Wigs 4 Kids of Michigan
Maggie’s Wigs 4 Kids is a 501(c)(3) non-profit providing kids 3-18 new hair. This nonprofit and salon provide free wigs and other support services to children and young adults. Their wig receivers, also known as Ambassadors, usually are from 3 to 18 experiencing hair loss due to alopecia, cancer, burns, or other disorders.
Providing children with custom-fitted, age-appropriate, and individually styled wigs is helping them regain their lost hope and confidence. After filling out a client form, a representative gets in touch with the client or their legal guardian to set up the first appointment.
By the 3rd and last visit, the hair color, length, style, and other necessary adjustments are made to help the wig fit comfortably. Besides providing free wigs, they offer classes, counseling, and social opportunities to help children build self-esteem and confidence during their journey with hair loss.
GuideStar awarded them with a Platinum seal of Transparency.
6. Angel Hair Foundation
A strong mother-and-daughter duo of Debbie and Staci established this foundation in 2007 to purchase hair systems for kids facing hair loss in Oregon. This quality and medically approved prosthesis has helped improve the confidence and self-esteem of the kids. Kids have the option to choose from a variety of hairstyles, lengths, and colors.
Since the wig is made completely from human hair, it gives a perfectly natural look when secured with medical adhesive. While families have the burden to pay for their children’s medical bills, a wig can cost them a huge fortune which is why this charity helps families provide free hair replacement options.
Charity Navigator rates them an 85% score for their strong financial accountability and wholesome cultural values.
7. Chai Lifeline
CL is an international children’s health support organization. Their strong network and presence provide emotional, social, and financial support to children facing life-threatening illness and their families.
They aim to bring the forgotten joy back into these families and, in turn, encourage every individual in a community to be kind towards one another. A wig gift can help the children meet their treatment challenges and enhance their self-esteem.
They accept hair lengths of a minimum of 14 inches for it to be turned into a wig. Once it is appropriately packed, one can mail it to the address provided on their website.
8. Little Princess Trust
This charity provides real hair wigs to children and adults up to 24 for free who have lost their hair to cancer or other reasons. Besides providing wigs, they also work to find alternative, less aggressive, and less toxic cancer solutions.
With the help of the many donations they received in 2016, they were successfully able to fund the institutions and organizations involved in this research. They have supplied over 12,000 wigs to children and invested around $20 million in groundbreaking cancer research.
The entire community of hair donors, hairdressers, volunteers, wig knitters, and fitters plays a crucial role in helping bring the lost light back to children’s lives.
The Little Princess Trust provides wigs to children and young people up to the age of 24, who have lost their own hair due to cancer treatment or other medical conditions. They have a simple application process where a medical professional or social worker usually applies on behalf of the individual.
Some more reputable hair donation charities:
- Pantene Beautiful Lengths – Partnered with American Cancer Society to provide free real-hair wigs.
- Ebeauty Community – Offers a wig exchange program to support women undergoing chemotherapy.
- Matter of Trust – Although not a wig charity, they use hair to create environmental aids like oil spill hair mats.
These organizations, along with others mentioned earlier, play crucial roles in helping individuals facing hair loss due to medical conditions, while also creating a positive impact on the community and environment.
Final Thoughts
Beating an illness requires courage and support from loved ones. While receiving support is undemanding, displaying courage and getting back into the routine requires exemplary efforts. In numerous cases, the children’s families find it difficult to cover the expenses of their kid’s medical treatment, and a wig on top of it can cost a good amount.
These hair donation organizations have established themselves to help them overcome the expense of a wig to fulfill their kid’s needs and wants. While they are fighting an excellent fight, a wig, and its new style can multiply their efforts for free.
