From Savannah, with locks of love

"A woman who cuts her hair is about to change her life." – Coco Chanel

When it comes to Savannah Rhoads, Coco Chanel's famous haircut quote is almost entirely correct. Savannah, who is age five, thought long and hard about cutting her hair and in the end, when she finally decided to let the scissors snip her auburn locks, it was her hope that the new-do would change someone else's life as well.

"I got it cut and gave it Locks of Love," Savannah said last week. "I had been growing it for about 18-months."

Locks of Love is a not-for-profit organization that provides hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children under age 21 with medical hair loss, according to the group's website (http://www.locksoflove.org/.) These custom-fitted hair prosthetics are provided free of charge or on a sliding scale to children whose families meet the Locks of Love Board of Directors guidelines.

The organization, which began operation in 1998, strives to help all financially disadvantaged children who are living with the daily trials of medical hair loss. Thousands of bundles of donated hair arrive as a result of the internet and word of mouth as well as publicity Locks of Love receives in newspapers, magazines and on television programs.

It was one day when Savannah Rhodes and her mother, Misty Anderson, were surfing the web that the found a video on YouTube that Savannah decided it was time to cut her hair.

Savannah hasn't had many hair cuts in her five years and admitted that before the trip to Shear Essence, she thought the haircut might hurt.

"But it didn't," she added. "But it seemed like it took a long time."

Savannah said that her hope is that her hair will go to a little girl who has cancer. Besides the YouTube videos that she watched with her mother, Savannah also recently attended the production of Rapunzel in Malta -- her big brother, Braden, played a beaver -- and she wasn't sure if she really wanted to have her hair cut.

"But I finally decided to do it," Savannah said. "I would want someone to do it for me so people wouldn't know I have cancer."

Savannah attends preschool at Malta's Headstart said when she gets older she would like to become a veterinarian so she can care for cats and dogs. She is the daughter of Anderson and Malta's Travis Rhoades.

She said she is looking forward to starting kindergarten at Malta Elementary School next year and she imagines her favorite part of school will be "playing outside."

Savannah said anyone who is looking to get their hair cut in the near future should now that the entire process can be a little odd.

"It feels like it is still there," she admitted. "But when you touch it, it's just shorter."

Both daughter and mother agreed that with nine less inches of hair to contend with in the morning that there are a lot less arguments as they ready for the day.