When does a haircut become more than just a trim or a little off the sides?

For the month of October, every Brockway Hair Design Salon has been offering free haircuts for those donating their hair to Locks of Love, an organization that makes custom hairpieces for children afflicted with cancer.

“We’ve been doing it for years, but we decided with October being a big cancer awareness month to begin making it an annual event,” said Client Relations Manager Deena Estes.

So far, Brockway has chopped more than 400 inches of hair for Locks of Love, which will make about six hairpieces for children.

Locks of Love accepts donations of 10 inches or more and one wig typically requires six to 10 ponytails of donated hair.

Brockway salons takes care of the entire donation process including providing paperwork and mailing the donation to Locks of Love, making the entire process seamless and easy for donors.

Estes said the stylists at Brockway came up with the idea after salon founder Helen Brock was diagnosed with cancer, and eventually passed away in 2001.

Estes said that having cancer hit so close to home sparked an effort by Brock and the stylists to become advocates and give back to the community and organizations that help cancer patients.

“It’s a great opportunity to take advantage of the free service and give back to a great charity,” Estes said.

Sacramento resident Jenny Shilling had been considering lobbing off her waist-length hair for a while before stopping in at the Lincoln Brockway Hair Design to donate her hair.

“I had thought about it and was ready for a change,” Shilling said, who’s had long hair for most of her life. “I’ve never had hair above my shoulders, it feels a little weird.”

Shilling’s husband, who said he prefers long hair, was not aware that his wife had been planning such a drastic change, but was shocked and surprised at the end result and the reason why she did it.

“I’m proud of her for doing it for such a great cause. It was just surprising,” Dave Shilling said. “I’m sure her hair will look just as beautiful on someone else who needs it as it did on her.”

Jenny Shilling said she was inspired to donate her hair after thinking about what it would be like if her own daughter had lost her hair to cancer.

“It would be devastating and I would do everything to make her feel better about herself,” Jenny Shilling said. “Because hair is important and for those of us that are healthy, it grows back so how could I not do it?”

Because many wigs are made for adults, finding a hairpiece for a child can be difficult and frustrating. Estes said that for the lucky kids that will receive custom wigs, it’s more than hair the customers are giving.

“They are giving kids a sense of normalcy and their confidence back.” Estes said. “That’s huge for a kid, especially when they’re sick and not feeling well. It’s a huge gift.”

There are 10 Brockway Hair Design salons located in Roseville, Rocklin, Granite Bay, Lincoln and Folsom. Brockway Hair Design salons will continue to offer free haircuts those donating 10 inches or more to Locks of Love through November to customers that mention reading this article.