Midland Woman is a Finalist for $100K Grant to Benefit Kids With Cancer

As she battled alopecia as a child, Jaeleen Davis received a special gift. Jaeleen was given a wig from Maggie's Wigs 4 Kids of Michigan, which provides wigs for kids who have lost their hair, often due to cancer treatments.

Now Jaeleen is giving back.

Davis is one of four finalists hoping to win a $100,000 grant awarded by the NASCAR Foundation. The Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award is given out each year to an individual who represents a non-profit organization that helps improve the lives of kids.

"I was eight years old when I lost my hair. It was Christmas morning when I first noticed that clumps of my hair were falling out in the bathtub," Davis says. "With every strand that went down the drain that day, a piece of my self-confidence went down with it."

Now at 23, Davis has aged out of the program so she volunteers and helps with fundraisers in an effort to give back to the organization that helped her.

"She has been nonstop for our program," says Maggie Varney who founded Maggie's Wigs. "She sets such a great example for our kids who walk through our door, it gives them hope that they can grow up and be successful and it helps with their healing process.

Each of the four finalists for the award will receive $25,000. You can vote for Davis once each day on the Betty Jane France/NASCAR website, as she strives to win an additional $75,000 to benefit Maggie's Wigs 4 Kids of Michigan. Voting is open until November 12. Donations to Maggie's Wigs can be made by following this link.