A few chops from some scissors was all Piper White needed to make a difference in the life of a child.
The 9-year-old from Seymour had been growing out her hair since kindergarten, and now, she will go into fourth grade with pride knowing she made an impact and has a new hairdo to go with it.
White got the idea to grow her hair out after watching a video of someone else growing their hair to then cut and donate it to children who are suffering from hair loss.
White’s mom, Megan, said as her daughter’s hair began to grow, they developed a routine for taking care of the growing locks.
“We had to brush it a lot,” she said. “We had to keep it up a lot so it wouldn’t get tangled. It took a lot more shampoo.”
Once the time came to finally cut it all off, Piper had grown more than 12 inches of hair to donate to an organization of her choice.
“We looked at many different places and read about them,” she said. “That helped me decide where I wanted to donate to.”
After chopping off her hair at N Stylz in Seymour, White decided to donate it to Maggie’s Wigs 4 Kids in St. Clair Shores, Michigan.
“I picked them because I thought they were the best one to donate to after reading about how they help kids,” Piper said.
According to its mission statement, Maggie’s Wigs 4 Kids of Michigan provides hair replacement units and support services to help the self-esteem of children as they journey through their health challenge, empowering them to look and feel better. The program assists young people experiencing hair loss as a result of cancer treatment, alopecia, trichotillomania, burns and other disorders.
In October 2003, Maggie Varney of Michigan sought help for youth in metro Detroit who had experienced hair loss due to cancer. In her search, it revealed there was no Michigan-based organization that provided appropriate wigs for children and teens at no cost.
Feeling compelled to help these kids, Varney founded Wigs 4 Kids. Soon, the nonprofit organization grew the attention of generous individuals.
On Jan. 12, 2005, Wigs 4 Kids was designated a nonprofit. In June 2020, the organization established a new Wellness Center, where it is expanding programming to include nutrition and fitness, massage, nails, skin care and an enchanted tea room.
The organization provides wigs and services for children ages 3 through 18 in Michigan at no cost to them.
Piper said while she was able to style her long hair more than her short hair, her short hair weighs much less than her long hair.
She said many people knew she was getting her hair cut off but did not know when. Megan said her family and friends were pleasantly surprised to see her with short hair.
“She has always been a giver and someone who just cares about people,” Megan said. “We have done a lot of things as a family, and she thought of ideas to help others on her own, as well. We have supported her the whole way.”
Megan said they have talked about the many reasons why kids and adults might need wigs and how donating hair can help children struggling with hair loss gain self-confidence.
Besides cutting her hair, Piper is heavily involved in helping the community through Girl Scouts. During her time in Girl Scouts, she has donated to local food pantries, made cards for people in the nursing home and picked up trash around the city.
“I like helping other people because it can put a smile on someone’s face and make people happy,” Piper said.