FLEMING ISLAND, Fla. -- Cancer diagnosis is hard for someone at any age. But, there's something about a child being diagnosed, that's especially heartbreaking. Maybe it's their size, or their inability to fully comprehend what's going on. What they know is they're sick, and sometimes their medicine makes them feel even sicker. Sometimes they lose what little hair they have. That's where the organization Halo Keepers comes in helping these kids with cancer feel a little better about losing their hair.
For 3-year-old Kasey Ladd, her trips to Nemours have become pretty routine.
"The first 24 hours is just a whirlwind. Everything is just kind of spinning. You have to wrap your head around the fact that your child has cancer," said mom Jessica Ladd.
Kasey was diagnosed with Leukemia in March of this year.
"She's got about four more months of the hard treatment and then she goes into maintenance which is 18 months," she said. "So, she'll be done with treatment in May of 2020. Right before she starts kindergarten."
Jessica Ladd fixes her hair in a little ponytail with a bow. It's something she knows she won't be able to do much longer.
"The part of treatment she just started, this past week, this is pretty much when she's going to lose it all. So, she'll probably lose it within the next couple of weeks," she said.
But these yarn wigs from Halo Keepers still gives her daughter the opportunity to feel like a princess.
"We've done close to 2,000 wigs in 2 years time," said Halo Keepers Executive Director Jalene Forbis.
Forbis said the wigs go to kids locally and all over the world.
"Playing with the yarn on it, kind of is a soothing thing as well. It's not just missing the hair sometimes, it's just being able to self-soothe," Forbis said.
There are princess wigs like Kasey has.
"She's always twirled her hair since she was a tiny little baby. She's always played with her hair. So, that's going to be hard for her to lose her hair. But, she sits on the couch with her wig, and twirls the yarn at the end of the wig," Jessica Ladd said.
They have styles for boys too like Captain Jack Sparrow, a pirate with an eye patch, or Batman.
"There's a lot of requests and not enough people to make the wigs," Jessica Ladd said. "So, I wanted to hold a class in her honor, to maybe get some interest going. And get some people to help make some wigs so they can send out these wigs to bring a smile to their face."
The wig making class will be at V Pizza in Fleming Island Monday, July 23. That class is full. But, you're still encouraged to come out and donate yarn and make a card for a child at Nemours.
If you'd like to bring yarn, they're asking for a specific kind. It has to be Caron Simply Soft yarn.
► Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. Download the WFMY News 2 App: Apple Users, Android Users