Locks for Lucy (Launched by Girls on the Run)

By definition, a coach is someone whose job is to teach people to improve—to provide training that helps prepare them for something. As a Girls on the Run coach, I strive to help girls grow their confidence, stand up for themselves, and give back to their communities. I became a GOTR coach to help transform and strengthen the next generation of girls—to make a difference.

 

But every now and then, those of us who are called to be coaches and teachers, get to experience the flip side of the coin when we find the roles reversed and ourselves changed by one extraordinary child. A child who possesses a black belt in courage and compassion. A child who is so sweet, sassy, and strong that she changes YOUR life forever. This child’s name is Lucy. She is eight years old and in 3rd grade at Van Pelt Elementary School. She is a natural performer and born to be center stage. She excels at Karate and enjoys being part of our Girls on the Run team. Her favorite subject is Math. She hit her first home run for her softball team last year. She loves her family and will proudly tell you that she has two of the best big sisters in the world. She can enchant an audience with her secret talent of spitting out water from her mouth like a Bellagio fountain. She is beautiful and spunky with a gigantic heart. Lucy also has a condition called Alopecia.

 

Alopecia is an autoimmune disorder that causes your hair to come out, often in clumps. When you have an autoimmune disease, your immune system attacks your body. With alopecia, the hair follicles are attacked, which results in hair loss. The amount of hair loss varies dramatically among individuals. Sometimes your hair grows back and sometimes it doesn’t. Doctors don't know why it happens. Lucy and her family have been swept up in an emotional whirlwind since the moment the first noticeable clump of Lucy’s hair fell from her head. Desperately searching for answers, her parents were sent spinning helplessly round and round on a tilt a whirl of doctor appointments and specialist consults–one being a five-hour trip away from home. Lucy’s faith was tested as she endured countless blood draws and endless questions from physicians but she demonstrated unwavering strength and fortitude.

 

To date, the root cause of Lucy’s Alopecia remains a mystery and specific information regarding additional autoimmune disorders is inconclusive. But Lucy is healthy and happy. And even though her life has been turned upside down by her diagnosis, with the support and encouragement from family, friends, and her Girls on the Run team, Lucy’s star power remains brightly shining despite this roller coaster ride of ups and downs called Alopecia.

 

The ability to activate Star Power in ourselves and others is one of many tools taught at Girls on the Run. GOTR is a nonprofit organization that creatively integrates running with life-skills based lessons using a confidence building curriculum to empower girls in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades. Each season, every GOTR team completes a community impact project, allowing the girls to help others and contribute to our community and the world. Our team has been beyond inspired by how Lucy has stood tall and steadfast in the face of adversity. Over the course of the past several months, Lucy has lost nearly 100% of her natural vibrant red locks. Yet she continues to be one of the most confident, joyful, and optimistic children I have ever had the privilege of knowing.

 

When we approached Lucy and her family to discuss how we could use our GOTR Community Impact Project to honor her battle with Alopecia, Lucy’s selfless request was that we pay it forward to the organization that has helped her keep her smile—the non-profit charity, Children with Hair Loss! Children with Hair Loss helps children regain the feeling of self-assuredness they need to get their grins beaming by providing, free of charge, a beautiful human hair replacement and care kit.

 

Therefore, we are so excited to announce that our Girls on the Run team has chosen Children with Hair Loss to be the recipient of our community impact project fundraising campaign. As a tribute to Lucy and her tremendous courage and positivity, we will be calling our project “Locks for Lucy.” But it could just as easily be named ‘Locks from Lucy’ since it is her passion to help others through acts of kindness that conceived this project.

 

She has advocated for alopecia awareness in her school and hopes this project will spread this information throughout our city. Lucy wants to help ensure that every other little girl (or boy) with hair loss has access to free human hair replacement too! And while we may not be able to reach every girl, we are confident that our Girls on the Run team will be able to make this happen for at least one girl or boy. And that’s a step in the right direction!

 

The mission statement at Children with Hair Loss reads, “Covering young heads to heal young hearts.” Together, we have the ability to make that vision a reality in the life of one extraordinary child—a child just like our Lucy! But we cannot do it without your help! Please consider donating to our “Locks for Lucy” GoFundMe page and help us reach our goal! No amount is too small and every penny is appreciated. And if you cannot contribute at this time, you can still do your part to help by sharing this page with anyone and everyone you know! Because every child deserves to have their Star Power activated!