Three students at Christ the King School—Elizabeth Quirk, Brady Gwynn and Samantha Allen —are growing their hair long in order to donate their tresses to the Locks of Love organization.

Locks of Love is a nonprofit organization that provides hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children 18 years and younger suffering from long-term medical hair loss. Most of the youngsters helped by Locks of Love have lost their hair due to a medical condition called alopecia areata, which has no known cause or cure. The organization provides high quality hair prosthetics to give the children self-esteem and confidence.

Children and others participating in Locks of Love donate a minimum of 10 inches in hair length.

When asked why the students were participating in this worthwhile endeavor, Gwynn answered, “I am a very lucky girl, and I would like to help someone else to be happy. I would like them to enjoy their life.”

Allen said, “I saw Locks of Love on TV, and I wanted to help.”

Quirk responded, “So I could help children with cancer. Always think of other people before you think of yourself.”

CTK eighth-grader Anna Konieczny, who has previously participated in the program, said, “It felt so good to give my hair to someone who really needed it. I could not imagine having no hair and going through all of the pain and suffering that these children experience every day. I will continue to donate my hair throughout the years because if I were one of those children, I would want someone to care about me.”

CTK School is located at 46 Peachtree Way, NE.