Michal Tenenbaum was filled with anticipation, wondering how long it would take for her hair to grow.
Tenenbaum, a 12th-grader at Beth Rivkah Ladies College—a Chabad school in Melbourne, Australia—hadn’t cut her hair since November and still hadn’t reached her goal of a 10-centimeter (almost 4-inch) braid. That’s how long hair needs to be, once it is cut, before it can be used to make a wig.
Tenenbaum had made a pledge to donate her tresses to Zichron Menachem, an Israeli nonprofit charity that provides wigs to children suffering the effects of cancer.
Tenenbaum wasn’t alone in her quest, not by any stretch. When a few students in Beth Rivkah toyed with the idea late last year, they didn’t realize that they would ignite a school-wide campaign that ended with the thud, thud, thud of freshly-shorn plaits piling up on tables in front of a school assembly. In addition to her two sisters, Tenenbaum was joined by 150 of her peers, who supported and encouraged each other throughout the long wait for their hair to grow.
When the deadline arrived on Sept. 28, six pairs of barber scissors glinted in the hands of the schoolteachers on the stage, and in front of them, six empty chairs faced the assembly. A representative of Zichron Menachem thanked the girls for their contributions, explaining just how much of a difference hair makes to those who have lost so much.
And then it was time. Wave after wave of girls came to the stage, and with trepidation—but above all, pride—they took their seats as their teachers snipped the locks they were preoccupied with for so long. Bursts of applause sounded each time the blades flashed and cut, as the girls gasped and giggled.
When the scissors finally fell silent, the tally for the hair to be donated stood at a staggering 148 feet. Most of that will go directly to making the wigs, and hair that fell short of the 10-centimeter target will be sold by Zichron Menachem to raise funds.
However, the teachers haven’t packed away their ad hoc barber shop just yet: Some girls have already started growing their hair out again.
