We sincerely enjoy that so many people find Emily’s story so inspiring. It’s just a simple act of sharing what you have with others. As her parents, we love how she doesn’t hesitate to share what she has. Each of our three kids has their own incredible and unique qualities and Emily has always been a generous girl. By no means is she perfect- she has lots of character development ahead of her- but thoughtful and generous, yes! I think that Emily understands how it feels when someone shares with her, just like she explained in her cookie analogy: “Ugh, it’s not fair, I should get a cookie and they should get a cookie.”
If you’re just hearing about Emily’s story for the first time, let me fill you in. Two years ago, a video of Emily (then three) cutting her hair for cancer patients went viral. (Click HERE 
to view her first video) Emily melted many hearts around the world when “Uncle Maffew” gave her and her Rapunzel doll a matching haircut. Emily donated six inches of her hair to the Canadian Cancer Society. It was my husband Richard James, owner of a video production company in Toronto called FlyPress, who made the video so we could share the experience with our friends and family. Her video went viral after we shared it on Facebook and it received upwards of 5.5 million views on YouTube. It turned into a pretty exciting year, with Emily being invited to The Doctors in LA, The View in NY and Good Morning America coming to our living room to interview her. The attention her video received was incredible, but what was most remarkable was the way such a little girl inspired and encouraged so many people around the world. For two years now we’ve been receiving emails and letters from people telling us how Emily’s video encouraged them, while others sent pictures of their own hair donations. We were especially encouraged when organizations that accept hair donations reached out to thank Emily saying they had never experienced such a large influx of donations.
The Second Cut
Flash forward two years and Emily’s hair was long enough to share again. Just as the first time, Uncle Matthew Collins, owner of Brennen Demelo Studio in Toronto, cut her hair. She had over 11 inches to donate! Emily left the studio with the cutest little bob and a bag full of hair that she so proudly carried home.
We wanted to continue Emily’s story as so many people connected with her two years ago. Perhaps Emily will inspire you too, as said in her video, “I would love if you shared your hair too”. Not everyone has long hair to give, but if each of us adopted more generous attitudes and shared whatever it is we have a lot of, we would all be better for it. Because shouldn’t we all get a cookie?