A 10-year-old from Utica, Mich., will get 12 inches of her hair cut off to donate to Locks Of Love.

Julia Shekoski said she wants to get the cut to help others.

Watch Local First News on Tuesday morning to see Shekoski get her hair cut live on air.

Locks of Love is a not-for-profit organization that provides hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children under the age of 18 with medical hair loss. These custom-fitted hair prosthetics are provided free of charge or on a sliding scale to children whose families meet the Locks of Love Board of Directors guidelines.

Donors provide the hair, volunteers staff the office, and the manufacturer hand-assembles each piece, which requires approximately four months.

The organization, which began in 1997, has helped over 600 children since its first year of operation. Thousands of bundles of donated hair arrive from around the country as a result of national publicity Locks of Love received in newspapers, magazines and television programs.

The donations continue to pour in. Most donors mail a note and a photo with their bundle of hair. Children comprise over 80 percent of the donors, making this a charity where children have the opportunity to help other children.

Locks of Love provides its recipients with a custom, vacuum-fitted hairpiece made entirely from donated human hair. The vacuum fit is designed for children who have experienced a total loss of scalp hair and does not require the use of tape or glue. Most of the applicants suffer from an auto-immune condition called alopecia areata, for which there is no known cause or cure. Others have suffered severe burns, or endured radiation treatment to the brain stem, in addition to many other dermatological conditions that result in permanent hair loss.

Donated hair is evaluated for its usefulness according to the following guidelines:

The donated hair must be at least 10 inches (preferably 12") in length

It must be bundled in a pony tail or braid

It must be free of hair damaged by chemical processing

The hair must be clean and dry, placed in a plastic bag, and mailed in a padded envelope to:

Locks of Love
1640 S. Congress Ave., Suite 104
Palm Springs, FL 33461

Monetary donations to Locks of Love are tax deductible. Donated hair that is not suitable for use in children's hairpieces may be sold at fair market value to offset the cost of manufacturing.