INPERSON
By Nicole Tafe
E
leven-year-old Carena Dapra decided to do
more than just get her hair trimmed once
school was out for the summer. “My hair
has always been long,” she says. “I’ve only had it
trimmed, but this time I decided to cut it short
and make a donation to Locks of Love.”
Carena, a resident of Plum Borough, is the
daughter of Erik and Brea Dapra, and sister
of Aubri and Erik Jr. This fall she’ll enter sixth
grade at Center Elementary. She’s a straight-A
student and works very hard on her school
THE
Kindest Cut
Plum’s Carena Dapra donates nearly 12
inches of hair to Locks of Love.
12 724.942.0940 TO ADVERTISE | Plum
subjects each year. “My favorite subjects are
math and gym,” she notes, adding that her
favorite teacher is Mrs. Schanbaucher. “I also
love horseback riding, softball and swimming.”
Carena learned about Locks of Love from
her friend Ashley, who donated her hair
about two years ago. Locks of Love is a public
nonprofit organization that provides hairpieces
to financially disadvantaged children in the
United States and Canada under age 21 who
suffer from long-term medical hair loss from a
number of diagnoses. Locks of Love meets a
unique need for children by using donated hair
to create the highest quality hair prosthetics.
Most of the children helped by Locks of Love
have lost hair due to a medical condition called
alopecia areata, which has no known cause or
cure. The prostheses helps restore a patient’s
self-esteem and confidence.
When Carena decided to donate her hair, it
was not quite long enough. “There had to be
at least 10 inches of hair that could be cut for