ritakml

First interaction! is a post written by  Chantal.

I have good news for you today, I bet Rita will be very pleased
I was at the dorms yesterday, when a friend of mine came and asked me why I cut my hair? I told her that it’s for donation to the Children Cancer Center. She directly went to her room and gave me her pony!! How cool is that!!

Fun(d) Raising tweetup & Kids with cancer initiative overview is a post written by Fun(d)Raising.

Fun(d) Raisers got to meet on a lovely tweetup at Noodles-ABC Ashrafieh and discuss different initiatives to help raising awareness about cancer and specially help unfortunate kids fighting that disease and hopefully win.

This initiative was kicked in by , you can read about it all on her blog. During our meeting Rita introduced her idea more in detail for the tweeps who didn’t know exactly the whole scope of the initiative and proceeded to summarizing what we thought would be a good action plan.
Then of course, suggestions and ideas started pouring in and hopefully all of them will be put into action as part of the initiative or as new ones.

First of all here is more about Rita’s action plan and the different initiative from our meeting

Meeting with the Children Cancer Center in Lebanon (St Jude)
First, Rita went visiting cancer centers and associations to get in touch with them and to know what they actually need. She met with a lovely lady from the Children Cancer Center in Lebanon. She told us the story of St Jude, took us around the center for a tour and discussed with us how we could help. What they honestly and seriously need is money, I mean MONEY as in a lot a lot of money ( operating a cancer center that treats kids for free is not any cheap thing )

We honestly told her that raising that much is not within our scope, but since our community members are active social networking members, we agreed with her that we can help spread the word, awareness and link back to their online donation page. People who donate are kindly requested to add the keyword “Fund(d) Raising” as a comment on their donation. Hopefully then, we will be able to involve many people online inside and outside Lebanon and help spread the word.

During our tour in the center, we met a doctor who stressed that it would be lovely if we can donate wigs and how much difference it makes .

Meeting with Chance
Chance is an organization that also helps treating kids with cancer . We went to one of their meetings, they have a series of events they do to raise money. We can easily help promote those events and spread the word.

Tamanna
We got the word about Tamana from the twitter – Tamanna is actually a wish-list for kids critical illnesses from different centers/hospitals and from different backgrounds. The goal of Tamanna is to simply bring happiness and brighten up the days of a kid going through treatment by simply asking them to make a wish and then granting it .
The wish list includes stuff like get a ps2, have a computer, go on a shopping spree, travel, meet a celebrity…

We got very excited over Tamanna idea since it gives us an easy to do goal list. It is targeted, we can easily create positive change in someone’s life by donating simple objects that parents can’t afford anymore considering the costs of medical treatments.

Wigs or “Mitlik Mitleh”
With summer around the corner, many ladies are heading to hairdressers. Many of us have a long hair that becomes an annoyance in summer, hairdressers are happy to cut them, but most take those long strands to turn them into extensions for rent.

What we want to do is simply spread the word and encourage girls with long hair to cut theirs. It is painless and simply, hair grows back easily.

The price of a wig with medium length is 300 usd in average. With the the buzz we can get couple of wigs done and as some of the fun(d) raisers suggested, why not sell wigs in exchange of money and donate it ?

Fun(d) raising gaming event
As suggested by as suggested by dashkoun, it would be extra exciting and fun to host gaming events . girls and guys will battle , race , play till finger muscles cramp ( ok, maybe a bit less ) we can rent a place in hamra with a lovely atmosphere, gamers can play, others can enjoy entertainement on big TVs (a movie screening anyone? ) . we can use this event also as a get together .

Yummi cookup as suggested by and
Who can get enough from enjoying yummi crunchy stuff ?  obviously no one ! – specially stuff cooked with love are hard to resist. That is why joelle and ghassan will be collaboration to create what they promised us to be the yummiest fund raising event yet. And maybe as darine pointed out, if you guys are up to it – we could have a day out to enjoy the food in some cool location and discover a lebanese area.

That’s a lot of stuff, where to get started ?
Many girls are already cutting their hair, so priority has to go for the wig initiative. We will then create text, banners for you guys to put on your blogs and to link to online donation page. after that we all get together for a wrap up meeting and gaming session where we collect the strands and evaluate our progress and hoepuflly plan our next move in detail with joelle and ghassan.

How to proceed ?
You can spread the word using any tool u want, u can tweet about it , share of facebook, put a blog post to engage ur reader, use the oh-very-powerful lebanese word of mouth to let people know about the collecting wig initiative , we will be calling that “mitlik-mitleh”.
We will have a default text you can use on ur blog or share on twitter/faceook. but it would be cooler if you post about this from your own point of view. Also if you have any ideas on how we can create more buzz, let us know by leaving a comment here or on the forums.
If you are a blogger and want to add a banner to support a cancer center or re-direct to their donation page, please get in touch with us to explain all details to you and to send you all the images/links and how-to.

Hope we will hear back from you , this initiative can only work if we all collaborate on it !

I’ll leave you with some of the pictures from the event.

 

Making the move is a post written by Chantal.

After writing my post, on willing to make the move and cut my hair, I had a lot of feedback, some were supportive, some were against, but this didn’t stop me from cutting my hair in support to cancer patients.

On Friday May 7^th, there was a brainstorming #tweetup to come up with ideas to help fighting against cancer, and informed everyone that I will be cutting my hair the second day.

Saturday noon, I met Rita and went together to the hairdresser. was supposed to come with us, but couldn’t make it due to personal reasons.

So we went to my hairdresser who’s really creative and already knows what suits me best:

Pierre Salloum
Jdeideh – Facing Mont Vert
03- 722 309

While waiting for my turn, I was choosing the haircut and taking Rita’s opinion. Rita was also informing Pierre about the cause and interacting with other clients who were really supportive

He had to braid my hair and cut it! I remember the last sentence I told him “Nothing too funky, please!”

It’s not like the first time I cut my hair short, but not that…short!!

It feels so light now nothing heavy to carry on your shoulders!

And everyone seems to love them

Hope all the girls who have long hair and don’t mind cutting them at least 10 – 15 cm, will consider doing the same!

For more pictures, you can check Rita’s post

I want to thank all the people who supported me all the way… specially Rita who was always checking if that’s really what I want to do, and if I’m really comfortable!!

Have a nice week everyone!!

Chantal did it! Saturday at noon, we went together to the hairdresser for the haircut. This was so exciting! Now that summer is near, I know that many ladies are considering cutting their hair short.

If you have more than 15cm length of hair to cut, donating your hair is pretty simple. All you need to do is to remind your hairdresser to braid them before the cut. (You can contact me or the Children Cancer Center in Lebanon or any other association you know.)

This act costs nothing, it’s painless and it can be done several times during a lifetime…hair grows! I hope it becomes a habit every time people with long hair decide to have a short haircut!

Talk to your surroundings about this possibility, you will notice that many were not aware and do not know that this could be done. Your hair can help people undergoing chemotherapy, trash it!

Should you have any concerns/questions, feel free to share/ask!

This braid is going to make a sick person feel better!

Two days ago, I heard pleasant news: Chantal informed me that she was going to cut her hair short and donate it to the Children Cancer Center in Lebanon.

This could sound trivial for some or the normal – without thinking – thing to do for some of you. But I invite you to think about it twice.

How many girls out there have you heard say: “My boyfriend would kill me if I cut 0.5cm of my hair.” ? How many girls remember to tell their hairdresser to braid their hair before cutting them (Keeping hem together in order to donate them.) How many kilos of – at least 20cm in length – hair go to waist everyday because of ignorance? How many girls keep their freshly cut braid at home wondering what to do with it?

I’m left wondering how short will Chantal dare to go. Will she regret it? We will find out this Saturday, 8^th May 2010!

Whether you are a man or a woman and you have long hair, think of all the good you can do by donating your hair to people who really need and can’t afford a wig, painlessly & without any effort besides your consent to help a sick person feel better about himself. (Never forget that hair grows back!)

If you already did it and don’t know what to do without your braid, let us know.
You can also inform the hairdresser about this initiative. He can lend a hand by collecting braids for donation.

No one is safe from cancer but everybody can help!

See you at the friendly Tweetup meeting!

• Get inspired from Sabryna’s story:

METLIK METLEH is a post written by Chantal.

I wanted to donate my hair to the cancer center since long time ago and even wrote a blog about how good the idea is in December. Donate your Hair.

Yet for several reasons, I did not do it. (Lack of guts, support, enthusiasm, my hair wasn’t long enough…)

A couple of weeks back, Rita Kamel got her head shaved and started an awareness campaign about cancer. So now that my hair grew longer, I’m determined on cutting my hair short and donating it to the Children Cancer Center.

So what do you say guys think? Shall I do it? Do you honestly support the idea?

Would love to have your opinions…with or against…other perspectives…

Now that the elections took place, you are invited to get involved in the action for the fight against cancer!

I got in contact with Tamanna association staff who shared the kids list of wishes a couple of weeks ago. The concept is simple: We need to raise funds and make true as many wishes as possible. (Special thanks to Mireille for the support she provided me with from day 1!)

All the ideas (From simple fund raising to event organizing to sponsorships to personal initiatives etc…) are welcome. Thank you for sending them by any means you feel comfortable with before/during the next Tweetup is inviting to in order to discuss their implementation. (Friday, May 7^th 2010 at Noodles in ABC Ashrafieh)

The question we ask the child is “If you could have one wish, what would it be?” After the child paints a clear picture of his wish, the Tamanna team sets out to create a magical experience, making every effort to involve the child’s family.

I am hoping that all the social media will participate in this project and make several kid’s wishes come true during the month of May, 2010.

Warm thanks in advance!

A few minutes in Rita’s wig is a post written by Lorena.

It’s been a week and a day since I got my head shaved. Whether people took it positively or negatively, it did not leave anyone indifferent.

I was recently asked about my take in shaving and wearing a wig afterward. Well, let me clear things out. This is how I envision the situation:

• The battle against cancer: Sick people tend to give up on themselves. Having a wig to care for is really important in making an effort which will make them feel a bit better.
  Women’s connection to their hair is so emotional making the hair loss experience really traumatizing.
  For a 14 years old girl with cancer, whose perception about her transforming body is altered, going out head shaved is really not easy.
• Privacy: Some women do not feel comfortable letting everyone around them know that they have cancer. Others do not wish to  worry their family or to be tagged as “sick”. Many just don’t feel like spending their day explaining their situation. I think it’s legitimate.
• Suitability: Head shaving does not suit all head shapes for many reasons. Therefore having a wig is a good backup.
• On the job: I work in the HR Department of a company. This includes making interviews which means putting candidates at ease to get as much information as possible and make the right decision at the end. My purpose is not to see how they would react seeing me. Work and my intent have nothing to do together. I am neither a freelancer nor a company owner and I understand the needs of my job.
• Extreme styling opportunities: I can go out with or without hair depending on my mood. It takes 1 second!

From the minute I got my head shaved I had a lot of reactions. People would come give me their opinion, ask me questions, call me and send me messages. When you live in Lebanon, where beauty reaches ridiculously superficial standards, where it’s OK to undergo life-threatening operations to become as “good looking” as the local singers or the girls who appear on the covers of the magazines they read (No offense to anyone), all of this is expected.

People ask:

• What have you done to your hair? ~ Isn’t it obvious that I got my head shaved? I wondered.
• Did you get married? ~ How is that relevant? I Thought.
• Is this the new trend? ~ “Yes, it is!” I proudly answered.
• Are you sick? ~ Due to social pressure and discomfort, sick people avoid going out bare headed…which is not my case!
• How did your family react? ~ They were prepared and they just love it!
• What did you boyfriend say? ~ He said it’s hot and sexy!

People say:

• If I cut 2cm from my hair, my boyfriend would kill me. ~ Don’t let me get started on this one! Too bad for you both!
• I always wanted/dreamed to shave my head, but I don’t dare to do it/it doesn’t suit me. ~ It’s easier to have tattoos and piercings? It’s easier to have plastic surgery? But it’s not easy to  have JUST really short hair? Hair GROWS! It’s reversible! Wigs can be used for backup! Why don’t you try my standards for a change?
• You have a lot of courage/guts/”balls” to do something like that! ~ Maybe. All I know is that I really WANTED it.
• You don’t  look like a “normal” girl nor the way a girl “should” look. You don’t look “conventional”. ~ When I look into the mirror, I feel great, liberated from  all the “social handcuffs” and stereotypes.

People’s reactions:

• Heads turn when I walk in public.
• People stare and pinch the person next to them to look too.
• A guy in a mall fell from the stair.
• A relative was so shocked she could not talk.
• Salespeople in boutiques talk to me in English (I could not be Lebanese, could I?)

Perception needs to change. If cancer is to be defeated, it should not be feared nor tabooed. Cancer or not, trend or not, if you want to have your head shaved, just step up and do it!

The way I see it: Fear is the worst cancer.