An altruistic and kind hearted, ten year old Cordal girl, Rachel O’Donoghue has just donated her long, flowing growth of auburn hair to the The Rapunzel Foundation charity.
As part of her determination to achieve this act of kindness, Rachel researched the charity and how it works and how she could go about donating her hair.
Washed, Dried and Straightened
“Your hair has to be 14 inches long. It has to be washed, dried and straightened before you donate it. It is sent to Wexford and they make your ponytail into a wig for children or adults with hair loss. “It takes 20 to 25 ponytails to make one wig,” said Rachel.
Inspired by the Late Late Show appearance and head shaving charity drive by Eoghan McDermott last May, Rachel decided that she would do something similar with her hair for a charity.
Determined to Do It
“At first I wanted to shave my head like Eoghan but my mom and dad (Elaine and Eamonn John) said I should donate my hair instead,” said Rachel.
“Every week I would come to mom with the measuring tape and ask her to see if my hair was 14 inches or longer.
“My parents thought I would forget about it but I was determined to do it.
“My mom explained to me that I could also make money for charity by getting people to sponsor my haircut.
No Government Support
“I Googled and read about different charities and Make-a-Wish was my favourite.
“One of the reasons I chose Make-a-Wish was because it doesn’t get any money from the government and I also liked how they helped sick children make their wishes come true.
“My mom, dad and I would like to thank everyone who donated and I was overjoyed with the €3,820 that was raised and was not expecting it,” said the determined Rachel.
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