Local family seeks hair-raising help for ‘The Great Cut 2024’

For almost 20 years, Soney Frommeyer has been growing, cutting, and donating her hair to organizations such as Locks of Love, Pantene Beautiful Lengths, Wigs for Kids, and most recently, Children with Hair Loss (CWHL). Soney says she made her first drastic cut after the birth of her first son, Jackson, when her long hair became too time-consuming to manage alongside a new baby. So she told her hairdresser, “Cut it all off!”

Later, her hair journey took a more serious turn. In 2011, her mother was diagnosed with cancer. Soney said, “My mom and I both shared a pride in our thick hair. Mine was a security blanket. I could always hide behind my ‘good hair.’ Hers was a chance to escape for some precious ‘me time’ while getting her hair done. I can’t imagine how difficult it was to watch as her beautiful hair progressively fell out during chemotherapy. Towards the end of my mom’s two-year cancer battle, she came to terms with her own hair loss, but she continued to feel profound sadness for all the kids she encountered who were going through the same experiences.”

But that was just the beginning. In 2019, her hair became part of “The Great Cut,” the history-making event conceived by The Longhairs organization. They broke the Guinness World Record for the largest hair donation given to a charity in 24 hours. They collected over 2,834 individual hair donations, weighing 339 pounds, and gave them to Children with Hair Loss, a non-profit organization that provides human hair replacements at no cost to children and young adults with medically related hair loss.

After The Great Cut, Soney’s sons challenged each other to grow their hair long enough [8 inches] to donate.

In February 2020, Jackson cut off younger son Holden’s first ponytail, donating over 10 inches of hair to CWHL. Then when COVID hit, The Longhairs encouraged people to grow their hair out again for “The Great Cut 2024.”

In August 2021, Holden acted as Jackson’s barber, cutting almost nine inches of hair for CWHL. But he continued to keep growing, and keep donating. In April 2023, Jackson donated almost 10 inches of hair.

Inspired by The Longhairs’ “Great Cut,” Soney and her boys began formulating The Great Cut Warwick, a local campaign to collect hair donations for The Great Cut 2024. The Great Cut Warwick is collecting already cut and bound hair, with a cut-a-thon planned for Saturday, March 2, 2024, at the Warwick Valley High School’s Wildcuts Salon. The minimum hair donation is 8 inches; however, the preferred hair donation length is 12+ inches. All clean, healthy hair colors and types are accepted, including gray and color treated.

For more information, or to help or donate to The Great Cut Warwick’s mission, email Soney Frommeyer at thegreatcutwarwick@gmail.com. Or follow The Great Cut Warwick on social media.