Locks of Love

History

Locks of Love was founded by Madonna W. Coffman on May 28, 1997. Coffman was a registered nurse who had suffered from alopecia in her twenties. Coffman's daughter also had alopecia and lost all her hair at the age 4. Locks of Love received a determination of its 501(c)(3) status from the Internal Revenue Service in December 1997. By September 2006, Locks of Love had provided around 2,000 wigs to recipients, completely free of charge.

thumb|right|A 2007 'hair donation day' at the [[United States|American]] [[Aviano Air Base]] in [[Italy]]

Tax deductions

Financial donations to Locks of Love are tax-deductible as charitable contributions to the extent of the law. The Internal Revenue Service considers hair to be a body part, and donations of body parts are not considered tax deductible by the Internal Revenue Service. The cost of the haircut, however, may be a tax-deductible charitable contribution.

Operations

The best quality hair donated to Locks of Love is sent to a wig manufacturer, Taylormade Hair Replacement in Millbrae, California. The highest quality long hair is used to make a wig for a child. To donate hair to the organization, your hair needs to be at least 10 inches long. Gray hair, overly processed hair, too-short hair, bleached hair, and hair that is otherwise not high enough quality for a child's wig is sold, and the proceeds are used to further the organization's mission, such as grants for medical research into alopecia. In 2007, Locks of Love said that about 80 percent of the hair donated to it is not suitable to be made into a child's wig.

In 2013, Forbes and The Huffington Post reported that up to US$6million-worth of hair donations are unaccounted for by the charity each year. Snopes pointed out that the discrepancies can be attributed to the difficulty of valuing hair and that Locks of Love's tax filing shows no income that would result from black market hair sales.

During its 2018 fiscal year, Locks of Love received $513,103 of revenue, and it incurred $724,897 of expenses.

Notable donors

After launching aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery, astronaut Sunita Williams arranged to donate her ponytail to Locks of Love. Fellow astronaut Joan Higginbotham cut her hair aboard the International Space Station, and the ponytail was brought back to Earth by the STS-116 crew.

All-American football player and Chicago Bears first-round draft pick Gabe Carimi's maternal uncle suffered from leukemia as a child, underwent chemotherapy while he was in second grade, and lost his hair in the process. At nine years old, his uncle died. He was mentioned often in family discussions. Carimi thought he would do something "that wouldn't take a lot of my time but would help other people". He grew his hair for 20 months, until it was long enough to donate to Locks of Love in 2010.

Professional wrestler The Honky Tonk Man has stated that he donates his hair to Locks of Love.

National Hockey League player George Parros has grown his hair long since the start of his professional hockey career, so he can donate it to Locks of Love.

Amanda Seyfried donated her hair in 2015 to the organization.

Actor Justin Baldoni donated his hair to the organization in 2023.

References

References

1. "[https://apps.irs.gov/pub/epostcard/cor/650755522_201811_990_2019101816762733.pdf Form 990: Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax]". ''Locks of Love Inc.'' [[Internal Revenue Service]]. November 30, 2018.
2. "[http://search.sunbiz.org/Inquiry/CorporationSearch/SearchResultDetail?inquirytype=EntityName&directionType=Initial&searchNameOrder=LOCKSLOVE%20N970000030670&aggregateId=domnp-n97000003067-732fc065-7126-46d3-8e01-192531a00124&searchTerm=Locks%20of%20Love&listNameOrder=LOCKSLOVE%20N970000030670 Locks of Love Inc.]" ''Florida Division of Corporations''. State of Florida. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
3. "[https://apps.irs.gov/app/eos/displayAll.do?dispatchMethod=displayAllInfo&Id=1201342&ein=650755522&country=US&deductibility=all&dispatchMethod=searchAll&isDescending=false&city=&ein1=65-0755522&postDateFrom=&exemptTypeCode=al&submitName=Search&sortColumn=orgName&totalResults=1&names=&resultsPerPage=25&indexOfFirstRow=0&postDateTo=&state=All+States Locks of Love Inc.]" ''Tax Exempt Organization Search''. [[Internal Revenue Service]]. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
4. They are provided to the children free of charge, and they may receive a new one every two years until they turn 21 years old."[https://locksoflove.org/get-involved/ Get Involved]". ''Locks of Love''. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
5. "Locks of Love Tangled in $6 Million Dispute".
6. "[http://www.locksoflove.org/history.html History]". ''Locks of Love''. Retrieved March 11, 2012.
7. Hayt, Elizabeth. (2007-09-06). "Lather, Rinse, Donate".
8. "[https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p526.pdf Publication 526: Charitable Contributions] (pdf). ''Internal Revenue Service''. Retrieved June 1, 2011.
9. "[https://locksoflove.org/faq/ Frequently Asked Questions]". ''Locks of Love''. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
10. White, Mary Gormandy. (7 November 2023). "6 Best Places to Donate Your Hair: Make a Difference With Your Next Haircut".
11. Chatel, Amanda. (2024-03-24). "What To Know If You're Planning To Donate Your Hair To People With Cancer".
12. Goldberg, Eleanor (May 14, 2013). "[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/14/locks-of-love-controversy_n_3269078.html Locks Of Love Has More Than $6 Million Worth Of Donated Hair That Is Unaccounted For: Report]". ''[[The Huffington Post]]''. Retrieved April 21, 2014.
13. Snopes Staff. (2015-03-03). "Does Locks of Love Sell Donated Hair?".
14. "[http://www.collectspace.com/news/news-121906a.html Astronaut cuts her hair in space for charity]". ''CollectSpace.com''. December 20, 2006. Retrieved June 8, 2007.
15. Mason (April 23, 2010). "[https://web.archive.org/web/20101229005313/http://www.uwbadgers.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/082310aaa.html Lots of locks means lots of love from Carimi: Wisconsin senior donates hair to charity aimed at improving life for ill children]". ''University of Wisconsin''. Archived from [http://www.uwbadgers.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/082310aaa.html the original] on December 29, 2010.
16. Boyd, Kelvin Ray. (2013-03-06). "Honky Tonk Man highlights tonight’s TWA card".
17. "[http://ducks.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=469182 Parros Cuts Hair for a Cause]". ''[[Anaheim Ducks]]''. December 17, 2007. Retrieved June 1, 2011.
18. "Stars Who Cut Their Hair to Support Charity and Loved Ones Battling Cancer".
19. "Justin Baldoni Cuts His Hair to Donate to Locks of Love Charity: 'And It's Done'".