Birthday celebration is a gift to others By BROOKE RUTH, Digital Media News Editor
Friday, January 9, 2009 11:28 PM PST
JOSELITO VILLERO PHOTO
Verna Wright closes her eyes as hairdresser Elva Ramirez cuts her hair at the El Centro Eagles Lodge.
JOSELITO VILLERO PHOTO
Locks of hair sit wrapped in sealed plastic bags.
Verna Wright’s 40th birthday party was complete with pink cupcakes, a disc jockey, and a jazz band.
But, also in attendance were seven hairdressers Wright had recruited who were ready to cut the hair of those willing to donate to Locks of Love.
Locks of Love is a nonprofit organization that provides hairpieces to minors with medical hair loss. It also provides wigs to those who have lost hair for medical reasons, such as cancer treatments.
Wright was not only celebrating her birthday on Friday night at the Eagles Lodge in El Centro, she was also celebrating the day she decided to change her life.
“This exact night at 11:33 10 years ago I changed my life and I have never turned back. My whole life is different,” Wright said.
On that night Wright said she left her first husband, who was a drug dealer, which set her life changes into motion.
Wright said she decided to celebrate her birthday and anniversary of sorts by organizing the Locks of Love event because she wanted to help children in need and because some of those close to her have died of cancer.
“In the past two years, eight people close to me have died of cancer,” Wright said.
At Wright’s birthday party one thing was missing: the gift table. Wright had asked her guests to forego gifts and instead donate the money they would have spent to Locks of Love.
By the end of the event about 500 inches of hair were to be cut and ready to send to Locks of Love, in addition to the money raised in lieu of gifts.
“She is always doing something for somebody, especially if it involves kids,” said Janis Goff, Wright’s sister-in-law and a hairdresser at Hair Benders in El Centro.
>> Digital Media News Editor Brooke Ruth can be reached at 335-4665 or bruth@ivpressonline.com
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cheripies wrote on Jan 10, 2009 11:44 PM: