Marketing Ohio Libraries

Euclid Public Library Staff Story

Part of marketing is letting the community know what the library does -- and sometimes it's letting the community know what library staff are doing to make a contribution to their community!

[Story submitted by Rebecca McFarland, Community Relations, Euclid Public Library, January 2003.]

The Hair Cut

"Katie Collins, a 1999 graduate of Euclid High School in Euclid, Ohio, and an employee of the city's public library decided to cut her hair. It wasn't an easy decision because it hadn't been cut for 6 years and measured about 4 feet in length! Katie wanted her hair to serve a purpose other than going in the trash, so she decided to donate it to "Wigs for Kids."

The American Cancer Society has a program where they collect donations of hair to be made into wigs to give to children who have lost their hair to chemotherapy. The Cancer Society has some restrictions for the hair that is donated. This wasn't a problem for Katie. The hair must be a minimum of 12 inches in length and can not be dyed or permanently waved. Katie's donated braid of hair exceeded 2 feet in length.

Knowing she was doing a good thing with her hair made it an easier decision to get it cut. Maintaining hair of this length (below her knees!) has not been easy. As she waited to get her hair cut she told stories of the challenge it has been to manage hair that is over one yard long. There was a time she almost got it caught in an escalator. It was frightening to remember, but she was glad to have avoided the certain disaster. Also, she won't miss having friends sit on her hair, which inadvertently caused her head to jerk backwards or to one side. The hair was often slammed in car doors and she was often the source of people's stares.

Some of her friends tried to convince Katie that it would be good to sell her hair, but when Katie heard about "wigs for Kids" it just felt like the right thing to do. The first step was to have her clean hair braided into a long, tight braid that was fastened at both ends. She arrived for her appointment at the Perfect Balance Spa where Ray Mandato prepared her hair for the cut. She knew that the top fastener was where her hair would be cut.

She selected a new style in anticipation of a shorter look. Stylist Anisa Piscioneri helped Katie choose a style that would keep her hair below the shoulders so she wouldn't feel like the change was too dramatic. Anisa asked Katie how she slept the night before the cut and Katie said she was just fine with the decision. We all laughed when Anisa said she hadn't slept at all because she was the one to do the cutting! Katie was actually turned down by a couple of other salons that wouldn't take the responsibility of cutting off so much hair. Katie comforted Anisa with her comfortable attitude and gentle smile.

As brave as she was, it took the help of a few friends to support the actual moment of the cut. Katy Farrell, friend and co-worker at the Euclid Library, came along to hold Katie's hand while the stylist cut off the 4-pound braid of hair that was safely tucked into a plastic bag. With the braid safely put away, Anisa went to work to create the final look to her new, shorter style.

From the salon, her hair was delivered to the national site of "Wigs for Kids" which happens to be just about 25 miles west of Euclid in Rocky River, Ohio. Two children will have new wigs thanks to Katie's hair donation. Jeffrey Paul, of Wigs for Kids, explained to us that when a child goes through chemotherapy, their skin is too sensitive to tolerate the sharp ends of synthetic hair. This is why the donation of human hair is so important. Mr. Paul told us that it takes 120,000 to 200,000 hairs to make one wig. Each wig is hand-made, tied one hair strand at a time. It takes about 3 to 4 months to make one wigs. The value of each custom made wig is about $1500 dollars, but for the child who receives the new look, the value is truly priceless!"

Massillon P L