A dementia care home resident became a ‘hairo’ to ensure a long-haired staff member could lose her lovely locks for two good causes.
Gillian Swaby went hands-on to help cut 13 inches (33 cm) of Laura Sheldrake’s hair, in the salon at Colten Care’s St Catherines View in Winchester.
It was the first haircut for Laura, the home’s companionship team leader, since June 2021, and was done in aid of both The Little Princess Trust and the Boaz Project.
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Under the guidance of professional hairdresser Olena Braharenko, Laura’s hair was neatly parted so that Gillian and Home Manager Vanda Baker, standing either side with scissors at the ready, could cut half each.
“This is lovely,” Gillian told the others as she was completing her half. “Thank you for letting me do it. It looks beautiful.”
After Gillian and Vanda had done the initial honours amid smiles and laughter all round, Olena tidied up the loose ends, declaring Laura’s new look a great success.
Laura said: “Since the last time I had my hair cut nearly three years ago, I’d been patiently letting it grow. I’ve been cutting and donating hair to the Little Princess Trust for about eight years now as I know they are an amazing charity. It’s an honour to help them.
"Hair is something most people take for granted but losing it, especially as a child or young person, can have a massive impact.”
The Little Princess Trust is a national charity that provides free real hair wigs to children and young people up to the age of 24 who have lost their own hair because of cancer treatment or other medical conditions.
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Founded in 2005, it has made and supplied more than 15,000 wigs. The trust says up to 16 individual hair donations are typically used to blend a single wig, a process that can take a wigmaker around 60 hours to complete. It costs upwards of £700 to provide fitting and bespoke styling for each recipient. The trust describes the many hairdressers and stylists who support its work as ‘hairos’.
Based near Sutton Scotney, the Boaz Project is a farm-based charity that provides therapeutic work opportunities for adults with learning disabilities.
It has been supported in the past two years by both St Catherines View and Colten Care’s other Winchester home, Abbotts Barton.
Turning Laura’s haircut into a fundraising opportunity for the Boaz Project secured more than £100 from friends, families, colleagues and community contacts.
Laura said: “The Boaz Project is our home’s main charity for this year so as well as donating my hair to Little Princess, we asked people to sponsor me so we could raise some much needed funds to support its great work as well. Having my home manager and one of our residents help me do this was just so special.”
Vanda said: “Taking part in the haircut was a lot of fun, certainly for me, Gillian, Olena and others watching, perhaps less so for Laura herself!
"She’s such a good sport and we congratulate her on what has been a brilliant way to support both causes.”
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