Girl, 12, goes back for third Locks of Love haircut
Published: May 9, 2007
When 12-year-old Haley Morrell was a baby, her parents thought her hair would never grow. Often, people mistook her for a boy.
When Haley was in second grade and her hair had grown to her lower back, her mom Debbie Brethauer was hesitant to let her cut it — but it was for a good cause.
“She told me that she wanted to cut her hair because there were other little children out there who don’t have hair,” Brethauer said.
Haley wanted to donate her hair to the Locks of Love organization, which provides wigs for children suffering from medical hair loss. “I thought it was just a passing whim, but she didn’t give up,” her mother said.
Since then, it has become tradition. On Tuesday, Haley sat down for her third donation, which is set to be sent out today.
“I’m giving my hair to someone who needs it more than I do,” Haley said before she watched more than 11 inches from her blonde hair disappear. “It makes you feel good inside.”
Haley is mature for her age and already talks to her parents about attending Princeton University. She said she wants to become a journalist when she grows up and is getting some experience working as guest columnist for The Tribune.
“I am very proud of her,” Brethauer said. “It’s difficult being in your teens with all that peer pressure and the importance there is on appearance. But she is able to step away from the crowd and do something like this.”
Brethauer’s childhood friend, Cindy Tjardes, cut the hair at her salon in Greeley. Tjardes, who is a cancer survivor, said Haley is the fourth girl this year who has come in to donate hair to Locks of Love.
“It can be very traumatic to lose your hair,” said Tjardes, who has now been healthy for seven years. “People who do this have a very good heart because you make it easier for someone else.”
When Haley left the salon Tuesday, she grabbed her braided lock to be mailed and shook her remaining strands to adjust to the new lightness.
It would be another two years till the next one, she said.
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