What it’s all about:
Thank you for your interest in being part of Crazy Hair Day! Your support helps improve the lives of Aussie kids living with Alopecia Areata.
Alopecia Areata is an autoimmune condition that causes hair loss. It can affect anyone at any age, but most commonly occurs during childhood. There is no cure, and the condition can be life-long. Around half a million Australians will be impacted by this condition in their lives, and yet many people have not heard of it.
Hosting a Crazy Hair Day helps raise awareness of this condition. A supportive school or community can make a significant impact on kids living with Alopecia Areata. Awareness can help to inform and educate, reduce bullying, and help empower young people.
Crazy Hair Day can also raise much-needed funds for research and vital support programs. The Australia Alopecia Areata Foundation Inc. (AAAF) is the only national charity supporting young people and families impacted by this condition. AAAF is volunteer-run and community-supported. Your support helps fund medical and psychological research, provide Grant A Wig grants, and host events like our annual AAAdventure Camp for Kids.
Your participation in Crazy Hair Day means so much to AAAF and to young people with Alopecia Areata in your community. On this webpage, you’ll find information and resources to help run an amazing event. If you have any questions, please contact us at info@aaaf.org.au
How to host a Crazy Hair Day:
Choose a date
The official date of Crazy Hair Day is Friday of Alopecia Areata Awareness Week – the third week of November. However, you can host an event on any day of the year that suits your community.
Spread the word
Talk to teachers, the school council, club organisers or anyone else you need to get on board to make this a great day. They might want to know what Alopecia Areata is, why you’re hosting Crazy Hair Day, and what they need to do to help.
You can get people excited about the event by hanging posters, putting announcements in your newsletter, and handing out flyers. You can find an editable poster and other tools in our “Resources” collected below.
Raise Funds
Fundraising is always optional but provides life-changing support to kids and families with alopecia. You can organise to bring gold coin donations on the day. You can also set up an online fundraiser for the event. We recommend using GoFundraise. You can set up a general Crazy Hair Day online fundraiser here: http://aaaf.gofundraise.com.au/
Donate hair
Did you know that you can donate hair to create wigs for kids? Hair donations during Crazy Hair Day can be a really fun and memorable part of this special day. For more information about hair donation, please click here.
Get your Crazy Hair Style ready
Time to grab the hair spray, ribbons, and glitter – Get your crazy hair or head style ready for the day.
Click here for some ideas and inspiration
Inform and discuss
Crazy Hair Day is all about raising awareness of Alopecia Areata. Your school or community group can share a special assembly, take part in classroom activities or provide resources to inform about this condition. See the “Resources” links below for video, print, and informative resources.
Take photos and share
AAAF loves seeing your crazy hairstyles and all the fun of the day. Feel welcome to email photos to our volunteers at info@aaaf.org.au. Please let our volunteers know if they have permission to share the images in a thank you message for your school or organisation.
Donate your funds
If you collected a gold coin from participants on the day, your school or organisation can transfer cash donations via our details at https://aaaf.org.au/donate-funds/
Online fundraisers set up on GoFundraise will process automatically. For assistance with donations, or a receipt of your donation, please email donate@aaaf.org.au
Resources:
Crazy Hair Day Flyer – Download this poster, edit it with the date of your event and your school or organisation’s name, and print and display it. If you don’t have a PDF editor (free versions are available online) click here for a Word doc version.
Alopecia Fact Sheet – General information about the condition
The School Pack – information about integrating Alopecia Areata into the classroom, including sample lesson plans.
Why Does My Hair Fall Out – Video for Kids – A fantastic video resource which explains alopecia to children. This video can be shown during Crazy Hair Day in class or at assembly to help kids understand what the day is all about.
This video is also available as a DVD on our e-store at https://www.freewebstore.org/AAAF-Buy-Online
Information for Young Kids – This poster is designed to explain Alopecia Areata in a way that is accessible to younger kids. Additional information is available on the AAAF blog, Love, Alopecia.
Children’s books – We have a range of kids books about Alopecia Areata on our e-store. AAAF provide free shipping Australia-wide.
For more support and information about running a Crazy Hair Day at your school or organisation, contact info@aaaf.org.au