San Antonio — It wasn’t the birthday Blanca Aguero had imagined.
Instead of candles or cake, she spent her 50th birthday in a chemo chair at University Hospital—fighting stage 4 cervical cancer.
“I felt numb, lost. I was mad, confused, asking why me,” Blanca said.
The Northwest Side mother of three has one wish: to live long enough to watch her daughter graduate. But chemo stripped away more than her strength—it took her self-esteem.
“I don’t feel complete. I don’t feel whole. I don’t feel like a woman. I feel lost,” she said.
Then, a local hairstylist named Erica Escamilla stepped in—gifting Blanca a custom wig and the courage to face the mirror again.
“I’m blessed and grateful for having to meet her, because me getting this wig has made me happy,” Blanca said.
Erica runs Tangled with Strength, a small movement she started after a client once asked her to shave her head before chemo.
“I asked God to help me figure out what I needed to do,” Erica recalled. “He placed this in my heart, and I’ve been doing it since.”
That moment of compassion inspired a surprise visit from FOX SA’s Ryan Wolf—and a $1,000 reward from Air & Plumbing Today’s Cash for Kindness program.
“I needed this for the women, and I didn’t know how I was going to get it,” Erica said through tears. “This helps me provide for more women like you.”
Because sometimes, kindness isn’t about hair—it’s about healing.
It’s about helping women see themselves again.
“I always tell my grandkids, use your powers for good,” Blanca said. “Serve your fellow man and give them love.”
Click here to nominate someone you know for the $1,000 CASH FOR KINDNESS award