What is Lainee's Locks?

 Lainee's locks is an event where people develop teams, partner with businesses, and crowd fund for three months leading up to an event on Lainee's 12th Birthday where teams will gather to donate their hair. All funds raised will go directly to research for Pleuropulmonary Blastoma. All donated hair will go directly to, Children with Hair Loss.

How does it work? 

Step 1. Register

• Create your team! Identify one person on the team who is willing to donate their hair (Note: hair must be at least 8 inches, and can be color-treated).
• Register and create your own individual profile. Be sure to choose, "Other", when choosing where the funds will go to, and then indicate that you want the funding to go to Lainee's Locks so that your profile is linked to this page.

Step 2. Customize your page

1. Customize your page by clicking the Personalize Page button on the left of your dashboard

2. Update your profile picture and banner image by clicking the camera icons. 

3. Update text by clicking on any of the pencil icons.  

4. Add your story about your connection to Lainee's Locks, why it's important to you, and what you're fundraising for

• Tip: Add a Youtube video under your story by clicking the pencil icon and pasting the video's full URL. 
• Tip: Photos can be added to your story using the insert image button. 

Step 3. Fundraise

• You can partner with businesses, have your own mini fundraisers, or share on your social media platforms. Donations can be made online, and the amount of money that you raise will be tracked on your personal page.

Step 3. Snip Snip!

• Join us on Lainee’s Birthday, March 9^th, 2023 at MeraMi Looks in Brainerd anytime between 9am and 12pm to donate your hair. All hair will be donated to Children with Hair Loss.

 Why Hair Donation? 

On May 2nd, 2015, Lainee donated her long, beautiful, curly hair to, 'kids who are sick'. Just four months later, on September 22nd, 2015 Lainee was diagnosed with Cancer. 

History

At the tail end of the summer of 2015, what appeared to be normal growing pains abruptly turned into symptoms that had Lainee’s Mom suspecting that she may have Lyme’s Disease. Lainee was fatigued and achy, but was in good spirits. She laid on the hospital bed singing into her, ‘Frozen’, microphone, trying to pass the time. Little did Lainee or her family know that this little four-year-old girl had a 15 cm by 4 cm tumor in her lung that had not only collapsed it completely, but had also pushed her heart to the right side of her little body. She had tumors on her spine, femur, her hip, and her kidney.

            Lainee spent months of her short life in the hospital, she underwent countless procedures, numerous surgeries, and re-built her strength through a complete physical therapy rehab. Prior to Lainee’s diagnosis, Lainee proclaimed for two years straight that she wanted to, ‘be a Cat’, when she grew up. After Lainee’s diagnosis and up until her death, Lainee would forever say that when she grew up, she wanted to be a Teacher. Lainee grew up sooner than anyone was ready for.

Lainee somehow ended up at the same hospital at the world experts of her rare cancer. As a result, the rare cancer was immediately recognized, and she was the first patient in all of medical history whose live tumor tissue was able to be used to start the first mice-model study. Lainee continues to teach us all the time: in love, in healing, in hope, in strength, and now in science. Please join us in continuing to learn and continuing to allow our teacher to do what she does best; teach.