Ballygawley girl donates her beloved hair to cancer wig charity

WHAT began as a childhood inspiration turned into a heart-warming event in Ballygawley, as nine-year-old Mia Askin successfully donated eight inches of her hair to the Little Princess Trust.

The event took place recently at St Malachy’s Primary School, Glencull, where friends, family, and neighbours gathered to support Mia’s act of kindness. The day was filled with music, fun, games, and a tea and coffee morning, all in celebration of Mia’s selfless gesture.

Mia, a pupil at St Malachy’s, had spent years growing her hair after being inspired by a charity haircutting event she attended at the age of four.

“I have been growing my hair for a few years and I am really nervous,” she had said in the lead-up to the event. “I saw a haircutting a few years ago and heard about what the hair was used for – it just made me want to do it myself so I could help someone else in need.”

Her mother, Sinead, recalled how that early experience planted the seed for Mia’s mission.“When Mia was four-years-old, she attended a Little Princess Trust hair cutting fundraiser and coming away from it she asked, could she do that someday,” Sinead explained. “She was fascinated to learn that little girls can lose their hair through cancer. This made her even more determined to grow her hair and host her very own hair cutting event, so that her hair could be donated in order for other little girls to feel like princesses again.”

The Little Princess Trust provides real-hair wigs to children and young people who have lost their hair through cancer or other conditions. It is also one of the UK’s largest funders of childhood cancer research.

Sinead added, “The Little Princess Trust relies solely on the generosity of its wonderful supporters who help the charity give hair and hope to so many children and young people with cancer each year.”

Donations in support of Mia’s cause can still be made at www.justgiving.com/page/sinead-askin-1