Beauty Student Finds A Need In Wigs

Cancer has always been around Rachel Fortin. Her mom and many of her relatives suffered from the disease in some way. So, when a friend and former boss lost her hair during chemotherapy, Fortin found a way to help, reports Morning Sentinel.

Empire participates in a national program called “Look Good, Feel Better,” where wigs are donated to cancer patients, she said.

“I had just started at school and got her to come in and be fitted for a wig,” Fortin said Sunday. “That helped her feel normal and bubbly again like I remembered her.”

After that experience, Fortin said she searched for wig stores in Maine that specialized in cancer patients but came up empty. She said there were no shops where a cancer patient could go in and sit down with a knowledgeable person to pick out a wig.

She found a wig distribution company online called Jon Renau and placed a $300 order and started Wig-Out.

“The minute I made my first order and started bringing wigs to school I made a sale . . . ” she said. “It gave me an amazing feeling that I made someone happy with something as simple as a wig.”

Her father is thrilled with his daughter’s new endeavor.

“She wants to work with cancer (patients),” said her grandfather, Ernest Atkins. “She really enjoys it.”

Photo by Dylan Otto Krider

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