4-Year-Old Donates Long Locks to Wig Charity for Kids

BUTTE — Any kid who loves haircuts may be a cut above his peers.

Nolan Drake of Butte, a Lego-loving 4-year-old, gladly let his golden locks grow long for an entire year then donated the hair to charity.

He wants his dearly departed hair to be made into natural wigs, specifically for kids. Christina Drake, his mother, let him make the call — despite his previous hatred for haircuts.

"He made the decision about a year to a year and a half ago that he was going to grow out his (already long) hair and donate it to children who don't have hair due to illness or disease," said Christina.

On Thursday, exactly one year to the day since his last haircut, she took her precocious son into Beauty on Broadway.

Then cosmologist Kyle Marshall started snipping Nolan's precious locks.

"I have cut a little girl's hair for charity, but not a boy's before," said Marshall. "He was very good. He was probably one the best toddlers I've had. I'm super proud of him."

Marshall said her shop usually uses Locks for Love, a charity that converts donated natural hair to wigs.

But after much research, Christina selected Children With Hair Loss, a nonprofit based in South Rockwood, Mich. The charity takes donations — monetary and follicle — to make human hair replacement wigs for children with medically related hair loss.

"I read reviews and audits, and from what I read, they've got only one paid employee," she said of Children With Hair Loss. "It's totally nonprofit, and they don't charge for the wigs, so I figured that was the one."

Plus, the charity only required a minimum of eight inches of hair. Nolan ended up with about 10 inches, reaching nearly to his elbows. Some organizations require 12 inches.

"It was pretty long," Christina said "He was totally satisfied. He couldn't wait to show all his friends his boy haircut."

Jennifer Smith, Nolan's Silver Bow Montessori teacher, used his charity experiment as a teachable moment for her early education class of 25. Nolan is one of the oldest students among the 3-, 4- and 5-year-olds.

"Some of the older kids understood enough," said Smith. "You don't need to give them a lot of information. I explained to them about sick children taking medication, losing their hair and needing wigs."

Smith took before-and-after photos of Nolan to share with the students.

"Montessori is very experiential and concrete, and that's real hair," Smith added. "We wanted to have some fun with it. As soon as Nolan walked in Friday wearing his stocking cap, he said, 'I did it.'"

In keeping with the school's mission, Nolan was a big hit with his school mates.

"We're all very close to each other, and some of the older students know, too, and we were excited to see him," Smith said.

Montessori, a private school for kids ages 3 to sixth grade, stresses hands-on learning while nurturing "independent children engaged in joyful learning" in its mission statement.

"He's a great boy — a very kind, empathetic child," Smith said. "It's been a neat thing to share in the classroom."

Nolan will turn 5 on March 26, then he moves up to the big leagues next year: kindergarten at Margaret Leary Elementary. His willingness to part with his hair impressed everyone.

"That's a pretty significant decision for such a young child to make," added Christina. "He's got a heart of gold, that kid. Now he wants to do it again."

Little brother Logan, a redhead, wants to follow big brother's lead.

"Logan never has said anything negative about his brother's hair," Christina said. "But yesterday he told me, 'I want to grow my hair out.'"

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Source: http://billingsgazette.com/