By Taylah Eastwell
A selfless Mount Evelyn girl who had been growing her lengthy locks for over three years made the big chop last Friday, donating her hair to those who have lost theirs while battling cancer.
11-year-old Jeanne Ostler had her hair cut short on Friday 26 February in order to donate the cuttings to the Cancer Council. The hair will be used to make wigs for people experiencing hair loss during cancer treatment.
Jeanne said her and her mum decided to grow her hair for charity almost four years ago.
“We decided to grow it for someone who is in need of a wig, I thought it was a really good idea,” she said.
Ms Ostler’s mum, Emilie, said Jeanne’s family are “very touched” by her generosity.
“The idea at first was me liking her long hair and not wanting her to cut it, so I suggested we could let it grow and eventually donate it to turn it into a wig for people affected by cancer treatment,” her mum said.
“The idea grew in Jeanne and she made it a point to grow it so that when it was long enough she would have it cut,” she said.
Emilie said her daughter had been to the hairdressers a few times to check if the length was long enough, but decided to keep growing it.
“Throughout last year it was really hard to get an appointment so obviously it grew even further, it got really really long,” Emilie said.
With the help of Wandin North Primary School, a Go Fund Me page was created to raise funds for the Cancer Council, with a goal of raising $1,000.
The page has exceeded its goal, currently at a total of almost $1200, which Jeanne described as “incredible”.
“We are very touched by her gesture to commit to it and to go to the end and take the responsibility for making speeches and to organise the donation process, we are very proud of what she is doing,” her mum said.
