Shelby Burnhum’s hair went from short to long in mere seconds.
The result, she hopes, will last a lifetime.
“(The hairstylist) just put it in a ponytail and cut it off,” said 12-year-old Burnham.
Burnham, a seventh-grader at Room Nine Journey School, sent all 16 inches of her long, light brown hair to Locks of Love in Florida. The non-profit organization creates hairpieces for financially disadvantaged children whose medical conditions have resulted in severe hair loss.
“Right away I wanted to do it,” Burnham said after she received a flyer from the organization in the mail. “My mom had leg cancer and my first grade teacher had lung cancer … I wish I could have helped her in some way, and now maybe I can.”
The decision to cut her belly-button length hair was an easy one, Burnham said, though the actual process was a bit scary.
“When I was going to get my haircut, I was really scared about not having any hair, but then I realized, what about the people who have cancer and don’t have any hair at all,” Burnham said. “It would be more scary for them.
Her next move, she said, will be an easy one.
“I’ll probably keep it this length for a while, but I definitely want to (donate my hair) again,” Burnham said.
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