http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepag...ive-it-to-poorly-girls-who-dont-have-any.html
By JENNY FRANCIS
Published: Today at 01:17
PRETTY Keeley Thomas loved showing off her mane of glossy hair.
The five-year-old would only have the bare minimum chopped off during trips to the hairdressers.
But Keeley, who has Down’s syndrome, has selflessly given up 20in of her precious hair so it can be used to make wigs for children with cancer.
And in the lead up to the big chop, she would proudly tell everyone: “I’m going to cut off my ponytail and give it to poorly girls who haven’t got any hair.”
Mum Lindy couldn’t be more proud of her daughter, who also ended up raising £2,000 for charity.
The 48-year-old says: “Despite her learning disability, Keeley has always been a very independent young girl. She has taught me that no matter what your own circumstances are, there is always room to help others.
“That’s why myself and so many others are so in awe of her, no matter what hairstyle she’s sporting.”
The single mum-of-four never thought her daughter would want to be parted from her locks.
Lindy says: “Keeley loved her hair more than anything so I was stunned when she said she wanted to have it all cut off for charity.
“I would encourage her to get her hair cut regularly but she would get angry if I told the hairdresser to take off too much. She loved swishing it around and trying different styles.
“Her long hair was the talking point of the town. Friends, family and strangers in the street would all compliment Keeley on it and her face would light up.
“In March 2011 her hair was down to her waist and desperately needed cutting, but Keeley always protested when I suggested going to the salon.
“It seemed like a waste to chop her hair off and throw it away when she loved it so much.
“It was then that I came across charities needing hair donations.”
Lindy, of Sawston, Cambs, found the Little Princess Trust, a charity that provides human hair wigs for children who have lost their hair through chemotherapy cancer treatment.
She says: “It sounded like an amazing use for the hair but I knew that they’d need lots to make it worthwhile.
“I showed Keeley the website and explained that lots of poorly girls with no hair needed help. She jumped up and down in delight.
“I was so proud of my little girl that I nearly burst into tears.
“Keeley was determined to give as much as she could to the charity so we decided we might as well grow her hair really long before doing the sponsored chop.
“It was 20 inches when we first decided to have it cut for charity and 11 months later it had reached 31 inches.”
With her hair now passing her knees, Keeley’s locks were becoming quite a challenge to maintain.
Lindy says: “I had to stand her up in the bath just to rinse all her hair.
“We had so much fun with it though, plaiting it and playing around with different styles. But it took nearly an hour to dry.”
People in the street would stop to comment on Keeley’s unmissable long locks. And the youngster would jump at the chance to tell them about her mission to help others.
Lindy says: “She would waste no time telling them about all the poorly children who need hair before asking, ‘Do you want to help me raise some pennies?’
“They’d always think it was amazing that a five-year-old with Down’s syndrome could be so mature and do something like that to help others.
“But to Keeley it’s just second nature. People were so amazed at what she was doing that they all wanted to contribute and sponsorship started to roll in.
“We expected to make a couple of hundred pounds so we couldn’t believe it when the grand total reached just over £2,000.
“Keeley made so many friends, too, and was so excited when we decided to give the money to the Down’s Syndrome Association and Opportunities Without Limits, a local charity that encourages and employs adults with learning difficulties.”
In February, with her hair nearing 31 inches, Lindy and Keeley planned the big cutting ceremony.
The event was held at their local salon on March 21 and they invited all the friends and family who had sponsored Keeley. On the day, when Lindy asked her daughter if she was ready to visit the hairdresser, for the first time ever Keeley’s eyes lit up and she shouted: “Yes.”
Keeley put on her favourite princess dress, as she wanted to look her best for the big moment, and headed to the salon.
She sat patiently in the special zebra-print chair as her hairdresser, Emma, put the super-long hair into a ponytail.
Lindy says: “Everyone else in the room held their breath as Emma took out her scissors ready to chop, but Keeley just looked straight ahead into the mirror and smiled.
“As they cut it off, everyone cheered and Keeley looked at her ponytail and clapped her hands in excitement.”
Twenty inches of Keeley’s hair was donated to The Little Princess Trust.
Lindy says: “The charity accepts any donation over seven inches so we knew we were giving them a particularly impressive amount.
“I was worried Keeley wouldn’t like her new hair or wouldn’t understand it was gone for ever, but she embraced her new bob cut.
“There were girls in her class at school more upset than she was, but she loved telling them the story about where her hair had gone once it left the hairdressers.”
Now an avid fundraiser, Keeley is already looking forward to her next sponsored haircut. Lindy says: “I was so proud of Keeley for what she did. I never expected her to do more but she’s already talking about doing it all over again.
“Her hair has already grown an inch since March and we’re hoping it will grow back to 20 inches in time to do it again next year.”
Keeley’s incredible achievement is a far cry from the fears that plagued mum Lindy when she found out her daughter’s condition when she was just five days old.
She says: “I was 43 and single when I was pregnant with Keeley.
“Early scans showed she had calcium on her heart, a sign of Down’s syndrome. I was terrified and felt helpless not being able to do anything to help.
“My older children — Martin, 30, Kirsty, 26, and Zac, 16 — were so supportive throughout the birth and when Keeley was born on July 23, 2006, the midwife instantly saw signs of Down’s syndrome.”
After the diagnosis Lindy went into autopilot, desperately trying to focus on how the family would cope with having a child who would need full-time support for most of her life.
Lindy gave up her cleaning job, determined to be there 24/7 for her newborn daughter.
She says: “We all pulled together as a family.
“But despite her being the most perfect baby to me, Keeley reached many of her milestones late and I worried she would never be able to achieve her dreams.
“But I needn’t have been concerned.
“Once Keeley had mastered walking and talking aged three, there was no stopping her.
“She wanted to make friends with everyone we met and they were always fascinated at her zest for life.
“She’s always so happy that no matter what is troubling you, Keeley can put a smile on your face.”
And now the five-year-old is even putting smiles on the faces of children she has never even met.
By JENNY FRANCIS
Published: Today at 01:17
PRETTY Keeley Thomas loved showing off her mane of glossy hair.
The five-year-old would only have the bare minimum chopped off during trips to the hairdressers.
But Keeley, who has Down’s syndrome, has selflessly given up 20in of her precious hair so it can be used to make wigs for children with cancer.
And in the lead up to the big chop, she would proudly tell everyone: “I’m going to cut off my ponytail and give it to poorly girls who haven’t got any hair.”
Mum Lindy couldn’t be more proud of her daughter, who also ended up raising £2,000 for charity.
The 48-year-old says: “Despite her learning disability, Keeley has always been a very independent young girl. She has taught me that no matter what your own circumstances are, there is always room to help others.
“That’s why myself and so many others are so in awe of her, no matter what hairstyle she’s sporting.”
The single mum-of-four never thought her daughter would want to be parted from her locks.
Lindy says: “Keeley loved her hair more than anything so I was stunned when she said she wanted to have it all cut off for charity.
“I would encourage her to get her hair cut regularly but she would get angry if I told the hairdresser to take off too much. She loved swishing it around and trying different styles.
“Her long hair was the talking point of the town. Friends, family and strangers in the street would all compliment Keeley on it and her face would light up.
“In March 2011 her hair was down to her waist and desperately needed cutting, but Keeley always protested when I suggested going to the salon.
“It seemed like a waste to chop her hair off and throw it away when she loved it so much.
“It was then that I came across charities needing hair donations.”
Lindy, of Sawston, Cambs, found the Little Princess Trust, a charity that provides human hair wigs for children who have lost their hair through chemotherapy cancer treatment.
She says: “It sounded like an amazing use for the hair but I knew that they’d need lots to make it worthwhile.
“I showed Keeley the website and explained that lots of poorly girls with no hair needed help. She jumped up and down in delight.
“I was so proud of my little girl that I nearly burst into tears.
“Keeley was determined to give as much as she could to the charity so we decided we might as well grow her hair really long before doing the sponsored chop.
“It was 20 inches when we first decided to have it cut for charity and 11 months later it had reached 31 inches.”
With her hair now passing her knees, Keeley’s locks were becoming quite a challenge to maintain.
Lindy says: “I had to stand her up in the bath just to rinse all her hair.
“We had so much fun with it though, plaiting it and playing around with different styles. But it took nearly an hour to dry.”
People in the street would stop to comment on Keeley’s unmissable long locks. And the youngster would jump at the chance to tell them about her mission to help others.
Lindy says: “She would waste no time telling them about all the poorly children who need hair before asking, ‘Do you want to help me raise some pennies?’
“They’d always think it was amazing that a five-year-old with Down’s syndrome could be so mature and do something like that to help others.
“But to Keeley it’s just second nature. People were so amazed at what she was doing that they all wanted to contribute and sponsorship started to roll in.
“We expected to make a couple of hundred pounds so we couldn’t believe it when the grand total reached just over £2,000.
“Keeley made so many friends, too, and was so excited when we decided to give the money to the Down’s Syndrome Association and Opportunities Without Limits, a local charity that encourages and employs adults with learning difficulties.”
In February, with her hair nearing 31 inches, Lindy and Keeley planned the big cutting ceremony.
The event was held at their local salon on March 21 and they invited all the friends and family who had sponsored Keeley. On the day, when Lindy asked her daughter if she was ready to visit the hairdresser, for the first time ever Keeley’s eyes lit up and she shouted: “Yes.”
Keeley put on her favourite princess dress, as she wanted to look her best for the big moment, and headed to the salon.
She sat patiently in the special zebra-print chair as her hairdresser, Emma, put the super-long hair into a ponytail.
Lindy says: “Everyone else in the room held their breath as Emma took out her scissors ready to chop, but Keeley just looked straight ahead into the mirror and smiled.
“As they cut it off, everyone cheered and Keeley looked at her ponytail and clapped her hands in excitement.”
Twenty inches of Keeley’s hair was donated to The Little Princess Trust.
Lindy says: “The charity accepts any donation over seven inches so we knew we were giving them a particularly impressive amount.
“I was worried Keeley wouldn’t like her new hair or wouldn’t understand it was gone for ever, but she embraced her new bob cut.
“There were girls in her class at school more upset than she was, but she loved telling them the story about where her hair had gone once it left the hairdressers.”
Now an avid fundraiser, Keeley is already looking forward to her next sponsored haircut. Lindy says: “I was so proud of Keeley for what she did. I never expected her to do more but she’s already talking about doing it all over again.
“Her hair has already grown an inch since March and we’re hoping it will grow back to 20 inches in time to do it again next year.”
Keeley’s incredible achievement is a far cry from the fears that plagued mum Lindy when she found out her daughter’s condition when she was just five days old.
She says: “I was 43 and single when I was pregnant with Keeley.
“Early scans showed she had calcium on her heart, a sign of Down’s syndrome. I was terrified and felt helpless not being able to do anything to help.
“My older children — Martin, 30, Kirsty, 26, and Zac, 16 — were so supportive throughout the birth and when Keeley was born on July 23, 2006, the midwife instantly saw signs of Down’s syndrome.”
After the diagnosis Lindy went into autopilot, desperately trying to focus on how the family would cope with having a child who would need full-time support for most of her life.
Lindy gave up her cleaning job, determined to be there 24/7 for her newborn daughter.
She says: “We all pulled together as a family.
“But despite her being the most perfect baby to me, Keeley reached many of her milestones late and I worried she would never be able to achieve her dreams.
“But I needn’t have been concerned.
“Once Keeley had mastered walking and talking aged three, there was no stopping her.
“She wanted to make friends with everyone we met and they were always fascinated at her zest for life.
“She’s always so happy that no matter what is troubling you, Keeley can put a smile on your face.”
And now the five-year-old is even putting smiles on the faces of children she has never even met.
, my sister fosters for the state,raising babies that have been abandoned by druggie parents or babies with problems...Her last one had Downs syndrome and was the most precious little thing i've ever seen,we all helped take care of her for 10 months. I sometimes envy their mindset as they have no amount of bullshit in thier hearts as much as normal people..Thx man
