Locks-of-Love First Annual Drive

     Long ponytails of hair that took several participants years to grow were chopped off on Monday Feb.12, as Gamma Sigma Sigma, the community service fraternity, hosted Locks-of-Love in MSU Lounge.
    The event was held at MSU lounge from 9-6 p.m. and was sponsored by Great Clips. There was a minimum requirement of a 10-inch hair donation. It takes 6 ponytails, according to Lock-of-love, to make a wig. 
    “Locks of Love is a national organization that creates wigs for children and some adults,” Britt Randolph, senior special education major and Gamma Sigma Sigma president, said. “There are patients from the Children’s Hospital in Macon that will benefit from the donations.”
    There were plenty of girls in the lounge looking at shorter hairstyles to replace the long hair the donors were sporting. Randolph had been growing her hair for eight years, and like many participants, she was a little intimidated by the prospect of a shorter bob.
    “I’m scared out of my mind,” Randolph said. “I took pictures of my hair last night and it’s going to be hard to let it go, but it’s going to a good cause, so I’m ready to do it.”
    On the other side of the barber’s chair was Karen McDuffy, a Milledgeville resident and a hairstylist from Great Clips.
    “I love cutting people’s hair and this is such a great cause,” McDuffy said. “This is  my first time doing this [Locks-of-Love] and I admire the girls for being so brave since so many women out there are attached to their hair.”
    Although this is the first Locks-of-Love drive in GCSU, many participants have donated their hair before.
    “I did it once before and I had a really good experience,” Missy Granish, a sophomore physical education major, said. “This is a really great turnout and it’s good that people came out to support this cause.”
    While others braved their first time under the scissors, some students came to what they hope would be an annual tradition.
    Kristen Malta, a junior psychology major, donated her hair for the second time, this time under better circumstances. Malta’s mother had breast cancer and caused her to lose her hair. It grew back and Malta was inspired to donate her hair.
    “It was a deciding factor the first time I donated my hair,” Malta said. “My mom’s hair grew back, so I figured mine would grow back too.”
    Malta’s hair was transformed into a chin length bob.
    “It was really traumatizing the first time around because I wasn’t prepared for it,” Malta said. “But my head feels really light… the bob will take some time getting used to.”

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Feb 16 2007. Filed under Features. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry