A young schoolgirl has donated her treasured locks to kids in need of wigs – in memory of her beloved granny who helped nurture a love of animals on the family farm.

Emily Broughall spent a lot of time with her granny, Mary Fitzgerald, when her mum Maria was on night duty as a nurse in the Emergency Department of University Hospital Galway.

They would also saunter off together hand-in-hand when Mary had jobs to do on the farm in Peterswell in South Galway.

That was before Mary died in June 2021, two years after she was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer.

“It was a big, big loss for Emily. She’s cried nearly every night in the last year. But this has been a kind of therapy for her. It’s been her own little project. She’s actually stopped crying,” said Maria.

Emily, who is in first class of St Thomas National School in Peterswell, saw an advert for the Locks of Love for LauraLynn campaign, where children and adults can donate twelve inches or more of hair to The Little Princess Trust. It provides free, real hair wigs to both children and adults who have lost their own hair through cancer treatment or other conditions.

Since launching her iDonate page late last month, Emily – who is seven – has raised a phenomenal €3,775.

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