Two years ago, a Chula Vista teenager discovered she had alopecia areata, an autoimmune disease that causes patchy hair loss. Gabby Cimmino, 17, is an upcoming senior at the Academy of Our Lady of Peace, and since her diagnosis, she has dedicated her time supporting other students, sharing her experience, and helping other youths with the same disease.
Gabby said she was diagnosed in June 2021 after finding three large patches on her scalp after coming home from school one day.
“I had a very rocky start with my diagnosis,” she said. “When I was telling my friends and my family, none of them really knew what alopecia was. They did not understand. I had to constantly explain what this diagnosis is. I felt very alone because nobody really understood my experience or what I was going through on a personal level.”
Gabby said this inspired her to bring awareness to alopecia areata. In August 2021, she decided to post her condition on Instagram. September is Alopecia Awareness Month.
“Endless outpours of support and love came from hundreds of girls from my school and my family and friends,” she said. “That pushed me to the direction of making this something bigger. How many more people do not know about this autoimmune condition? Through that, Project Alopecia was born.”
Project Alopecia is a two-part project, said Gabby. For the first part she collaborated with her school community and hosted a health fair in March.
“We had all kinds of people from health and wellness fields come and talk about their professions,” she said. “I had a guest speaker, Georgia Van Cuylenburg, come and talk to more than 500 girls at my school.”
Gabby said she had two students who donated hair at the health fair, and after seeing them donating, a teacher came up and donated her hair also.
The second part of the project was distributing tote bags. Gabby said the idea was inspired by her mother and her.
“We were trying to find something on how we could bring something to younger kids without directly pushing them into it. Something a little more calming and something that they could explore on their own. The tote bags have all kinds of pamphlets that were donated by nonprofit organizations, like Coming up Rosies, a hair-loss wig company, Children with Hair Loss Hair Donation, and the National Alopecia Areata Foundation that donated pamphlets, little trinkets like bracelets, pens, pencils, stickers, and a headscarf. I also created my own logo which is on the bag, on a sticker, and I have my own pamphlet that explains my Gold Award project in there.”
Gabby is a Girl Scout with Troop 6030 Chula Vista and is completing her project for the Gold Award, the Girl Scout’s highest honor for her work. Only 5.4% of scouts are eligible for the award that demonstrates a girl’s dedication, leadership, and commitment to make a positive difference in her community and the world.
“The biggest thing about my tote bags is that each of them has a specific book filled with kids who have alopecia, written by characters of people that have alopecia areata,” she said.
“It is an educational book. It is diverse so there are many different faces and skin colors that you see. They were donated to me by people who were on my Amazon Wish List. Also, Coming up Rosies donated 100 headscarves.”
Gabby said she went to a principal’s meeting at the Diocese of San Diego and gave bags to the principals and Gabby, with the help of her mother, drove to many schools across the county, distributing these bags to students. She said she partnered with the superintendent of school for the diocese, Leticia Osegura, who allowed her to speak to all of the principals, which is nearly 50 schools.
“She was very supportive of me throughout this entire process, as was the administration at the Academy of our Lady of Peace Dr. Brandy Sato and Mrs. Allison Knoll,” she said.
So far, Gabby has donated nearly 100 tote bag kits to students in and around San Diego.
For more information about Project Alopecia, visit www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100086349327662. Gabby also has a Project Alopecia video on YouTube at https://youtu.be/BuKwKJKJzEc. Her blog of her experience is at bit.ly/3CRMK9B. Her Amazon Wish List can be found at https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1GVEOJ05A256C?ref_=wl_share.
