NorCal CAP for CALIPALOOZA 2020

Alopecia is an autoimmune disease that is not life threatening, but is life altering. It is not contagious.  It is almost like your body is allergic to hair, which causes it to fall out. That's the good part of Alopecia. The bad part is being teased, made fun of, laughed at and ignored. Emotionally, it can be devastating.

Children's Alopecia Project (CAP) is here to build self-esteem, provide support and raise awareness. It's that simple!

You have the chance to help get kids to our regional camps and the annual international camp, Alopeciapalooza! Everytime we raise $250, a child with Alopecia gets to attend camp for free! Check out this amazing video showing the impact CAP Kid Camps have! 

CAP is the only federally tax exempt 501 (c) 3 Non-Profit Charity devoted specifically to children living with this incurable autoimmune hair loss disease, Alopecia.

We are REALLY GRATEFUL for ANY donation BIG or small - this is our ongoing fundraiser for events and camps 😊 

Thank you SO MUCH!!!

Manon Hessels ~ NorCal CAP Group Leader

(CAP mom, NorCal Events, Communications & Fundraising, CAliPalooza Director ) 

Lisa Lefkowitz  ~ NorCal CAP Group Assistant

(CAP mentor, NorCal & CAliPalooza Photography & Fundraising)

CAP Kid Group
NorCal CAP kid Group
Children's Alopecia Project

norcalcap@gmail.com

(650) 296 7261 (Manon)

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**** Our stories**** 

MANON:

At the age of 8, my daughter was diagnosed with Alopecia Totalis. She was devastated, became depressed and changed into a withdrawn girl, embarrassed about her looks and afraid to be different. She was bullied and ostracized. Her happiness was gone and she wanted to pause her life, until the day her hair would grow back. She did not even want to go outside anymore. Her suffering made our worlds fall apart. In many cases, as with Eva, Alopecia can lead to severe depression. 

There is no cure for Alopecia, but as we learned, there is a key to happiness. That key is acceptance and support. This is what helps our kids to regain self confidence. We can create support by building a community for them where they are not different. Or even better: where all our differences are celebrated!  Where they can be who they are. Where they can have fun without the worries that alopecia can bring into your daily life.

Three years after our youngest daughter was diagnosed, our older daughter Isabel was diagnosed at age 13 with Alopecia Areata. What a difference it was for her to get into this journey when already being a part of the CAP community and having all the support and knowledge from the get go! This is exactly what we wish for other CAP kids and families as well.

LISA:

I was diagnosed with Alopecia in my 20s. It was absolutely devastating. Social media didn't exist at that time, so I didn't have a community of support at my fingertips. I was isolated in my difference. I wore wigs for 10 years, and suffered greatly. Then, time passed, social media blossomed, and I began to see that other women around the world were happily living bald. If they could challenge a social norm and survive, maybe I could too. 

CAP has given me support and community when I needed it most. It's also given me a purpose in helping these kids navigate many of the same issues I had to (but as kids -- so much more difficult!!!) and it normalized my choice to live bald. 

Over the past few years, I've grown comfortable enough to share my story. NPR's Bay Area affiliate, KQED, made a short documentary film about the women's group that I founded, SF Bay Area Bald Girls.  I was also on the radio on KQED's Forum in an episode entitled "Living Bald: Life After Hair Loss." 

**** THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING CAP KIDS! ******

ALL PORTRAITS BY LISA LEFKOWITZ

Photogrid Calipalooza 2019:

Photogrid CAP Kid Camp Malibu 2018:

Photogrid CAP Kid Camp Malibu 2017: