Give Hair Peace a Chance

PHOTO COURTESY OF HAIR PEACE CHARITIES

After raising two kids on her own, Lisa Hilliard was looking forward to some alone time in her empty nest.

Then cancer moved in.

“I literally had nobody,” the Butler County native says. “I had just moved back to the area. I didn’t know my neighbors. I took myself for a biopsy at Magee. I was really angry and surprised.”

Her fears were quelled by a phone conversation with Bonny Diver, a local radio personality who founded Hair Peace Charities in 2005 after her own cancer diagnosis. Because most insurance companies don’t cover the cost of wigs, the nonprofit organization provides women and girls who are going through cancer treatment in Western Pennsylvania with up to $250 to buy one.

Although Hilliard didn’t end up needing a wig, the moral support she received and the friendships that blossomed from the outreach gave her the confidence to keep going.

“She was my lifeline,” Hilliard says of Diver. “I don’t know how I would’ve made it through those days without her — a stranger.”

Diver is known as “The Energizer Bonny” for her tireless work ethic. This year alone, she’s fielded more than 200 calls from women who are battling the disease.

“They call for funding on the wigs then we talk, sometimes for over 60 minutes, about their situation and concerns,” Diver says. “Then they are thankful for being on my prayer team’s list. We have great speakers at our survival group nights about lymphedema, nutrition and other topics around being the empowered patient.”

PHOTO COURTESY OF HAIR PEACE CHARITIES

Hair Peace’s 21st Annual Recipe For Hope fundraiser will be held July 31 at the Mayernik Center in Ohio Township. There will be 18 local TV and radio celebrities serving specialty dishes and cocktails as they compete for The Perfect Plate Award. Tickets are $100 until June 30 and can be purchased online. (For the third year in a row, I’ll be one of the judges.)

Last year, the event raised more than $62,000. In 2024, Dr. Mary Beth Malay, a retired Allegheny Health Network breast surgeon and honorary Hair Peace Charities board member, announced a $250,000 contribution over the next decade to support the mission.

In this uncertain economic climate, donations are needed more than ever.

“Dr. Malay is wonderful for believing in our work, but every dollar is important,” Diver explains. “If someone has $10 a month they contribute in automatic payments, it may not seem like much, however it all adds up.”

Songs For Life, another fundraiser now in its second year, will take place Sept. 19 at a private estate in Sewickley Hills. Advance-only tickets are available online for $25. Guests are invited to bring blankets, chairs, food and drink while they enjoy performances by jazz-blues duo Jessica Lee and Mark Strickland and the Kate Hinote Trio. An optional buffet dinner includes sliced filet, chicken, orzo salad, roasted vegetables, desserts, wine and beverages for an additional $45.

In addition to organizing events and providing support services, Hair Peace works with 16 area salons that have expertise in medical hair loss.

Roberta Kozel, who also serves as president of the Hair Peace board of directors, has owned Salon IAOMO in Green Tree since 2008, along with Noggin Master Studio, its sister company that offers scalp micropigmentation and non-laser tattoo removal.

PHOTO COURTESY OF HAIR PEACE CHARITIES

She spent the first half of her career working for a national hair restoration company and is one of 30 people in the United States to earn the American Hair Loss Council’s Master’s Certification.

The name IAOMO is an acronym that stands for “I am on my own.” Cancer patients who come to her salon, which includes a wig boutique, soon realize they aren’t alone.

“When somebody walks in with their tail between their legs, I can make them look beautiful and they’ll walk out with their head held high,” says Kozel, who leads a team of experienced and compassionate stylists. “That’s why I’m so invested in Hair Peace; I completely understand and see it first-hand.”

A young dancer who is battling cancer pirouetted through the salon’s parking lot after receiving her wig.

“I wish Hair Peace had more help,” Kozel says. “We could do so much more.”