As overlapping flowers, petal-shaped borders and teardrop accents spread across her previously bare scalp, Joanne Messeri caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror.
For the first time since she lost her hair to chemotherapy, she saw herself differently.
“I felt beautiful again.”
The transformation was because of the work of Nirali Schrader, owner of Akron Henna Art. She creates free henna crowns for patients undergoing chemotherapy to help them regain their confidence after losing their hair.
It’s a tribute to Schrader’s parents, Prakash and Shila Shah, who both had cancer.
The idea came to her after Schrader saw how her mother changed after being diagnosed with lymphoma. “My mother was a tough cookie,” she said. “She had a strong, beautiful personality. I wanted to be like her.”
But after her mother lost her hair following chemotherapy, Schrader said everything changed.
“She used to go outside and have fun, but she didn’t feel beautiful anymore,” Schrader said.
Schrader learned the art of henna in India when she was 8 years old. It’s a freehand art with different patterns, she said. Each design reflects the person wearing it.
“Every henna art tells the story about that person,” she said.
Helping cancer patients feel beautiful and confident is what Schrader considers the most rewarding part of creating free henna crowns.
“I feel like I’m adding something in a person’s life,” she said. “God gave me the skill, and I’m using it to help somebody.”
The confidence the henna crown gave Messeri lasted longer than the artwork itself, which fades after about three weeks. After years of relying on wigs and hats, she said, it’s changed how she feels about her hair loss.
“When you’re bald, it’s not easy going places, especially in the summer when you don’t want to cover your head,” she said, adding that people could be hesitant to approach her or unsure how to react.
“But by having the henna crown, it’s like you’re giving people permission to look.”
