St. Baldrick’s event exceeds expectations, By Ginny Raue West Milford It was positively hair raising. As the shorn locks fell, the guys started to look better than they had before the stylist’s buzzer made tracks across their noggins. Or perhaps it was their good intentions that made it seem so. Giving up a head of hair to raise funds for childhood cancer research through the Saint Baldrick’s Foundation seemed to suit West Milford’s Finest and Bravest very well. The benefit event, held at the Macopin firehouse last Saturday, brought out several hundred spectators and 60 “shavees.” There were grown men and boys, about 40 firemen from West Milford and beyond, a dozen West Milford policemen - and one very gutsy woman. All had obtained pledges, amounting to $18,000. That figure made for some very happy bald people. Dave LeMay, a firefighter with West Milford Fire Company #4, and Police Officer Rob Kulawiak co-chaired the event. The erratic schedules of emergency workers could have been a nightmare of conflicts in the planning stages, but that was not the case. “The volunteers within the ranks came easy. Everybody made time to step up,” Kulawiak said. LeMay and Kulawiak are pleased with the turnout and grateful for the all the support. The volunteer hair stylists, Maha Bayan and Amber Roosma of Zayna’s Cuts for Kids in Pompton Lakes and Karen from Karen’s Hair Care in Hewitt worked non-stop, Kohl’s sent workers and a grant, Costco and the Hewitt A&P provided the drinks and food for the barbecue. The Harmony Brothers, a local band, donated their talents. “We thought it was a great cause,” said band member Doug Fried. The biggest surprise was probably when Chris Alessio walked in. She was one of the first “shavees” and, smiling all the while, she took it in stride. Or maybe it was mild hysteria? At any rate, Alessio had good reason to be there. “I’m doing it for the children, for friends, for women I’ve loved who lost the battle and for the survivors who’ve lost their hair. But my husband is not too thrilled,” she said with a laugh. Joe Treadaway, a Company #4 firefighter for three years, was first up. He’d been growing his hair for the last 10 months in anticipation of the cut. Looking on was his wife Trish and their three-month-old daughter Caeleigh. Treadaway and Caeleigh looked quite alike after the haircut. “The tradition in my family is that babies don’t get their first hair cut until they are a year old. That would put Caeleigh right there for next year’s event, but Mom may have something to say about that,” he said. “For the most part every guy in the firehouse has kids and we can relate on a personal basis. Whenever kids are in need or sick it just pulls at our heart strings, even though we may seem like tough guys on the outside,” he added. LeMay and Kulawiak report they have boots on the ground for next year, hoping to pull in all the town’s emergency workers as well as schools and other organizations. Their goal is to grow the event each year. As for LeMay, who works for the Passaic County Sheriff’s Department, he was glad to get his hair buzzed after growing it for six weeks. “All my grey hair came out. Now I look younger,” he said. There was much good humor but underneath were some very caring hearts. “We all agree that maybe the $18,000 we raised may be the money needed to save a child,” Kulawiak said.