It’s no surprise that with America’s obsession for perfection, that people have pushed the envelope towards making the beauty industry one of the top multi-billion dollar business’ in the world. Celebrities everywhere seem to set the tone for what is socially and fashionably acceptable, which then propels the rest of us to run out and mimic their same glossy locks and expensive hair treatments in the futile attempt to stop father time in his tracks! While most of us are shelling out hundreds of dollars a year for cutting edge highlights and pricey haircuts, a large portion of our population desperately tries to hang on to their last bit of dignity, while suffering from hair loss. Every day, hundreds of thousands of people across the U.S. and all over the world, are losing their hair from cancer treatments, medications, or the harmless but undignified disease known as Alopecia Areata.

Awoman by the name of Madonna Coffman was one of those people. In her twenties, she had developed Alopecia Areata (meaning hair loss in spots), after receiving a Hepatitis vaccination, and though she had recovered; her four year old daughter would come to experience the same disease some fifteen years later. It was through this experience that she had decided to find a solution to what had proved to be more difficult for her to witness than with her own trials with the common disease. With her daughter’s recovery as her inspiration, Mrs. Coffman quit all other charity work and took on Locks of Love as a full time volunteer, where she would begin filling her garage with bins full of mail and donated hair. It was only after she had secured donated office space from a nearby hospital and locating a manufacturer of the highest quality prosthetics (hair), that Locks of Love was up and running, creating realistic looking wigs with real hair, for the people who so desperately needed them!

Since then, Locks of Love has been featured or mentioned on television shows such as The Today Show, Entertainment Tonight, Oprah, 20/20, The View, Jay Leno, Maury Povich, Good Morning America, CBS Good Morning, CNN Espanol and Inside Edition and in national publications including USA Today, The NY Times, People, Seventeen, Glamour, CosmoGirl, Self, Redbook, Woman’s Day, ElleGirl, Child Magazine, and Ladies Home Journal.

For more information, you may visit their website at http://www.locksoflove.com, where you will find valuable information about donating and/or requesting a wig for yourself or loved one. They are always looking for volunteers and give easy instructions to start a fund raising event of your own! For more information, you may also contact Locks of Love at (561) 963-1677 or fax (561) 963-9914, where they would be happy to assist you with your questions or needs!