Free Haircut Event Attendees Report Haircuts Were, Factually, Free; No Asterisks Discovered

WAUKESHA — The 18th annual Back to School Free Haircutz event wrapped up Sunday evening at the Alliant Energy Center having delivered exactly what its title promised, according to a post-event survey of all 340 participating families that found, without exception, that the haircuts distributed over the two-day event had cost nothing.

The event, run August 23 and 24 by a rotating crew of 14 licensed stylists donating their Saturday and Sunday, has offered complimentary back-to-school haircuts to Waukesha County children since 2008. This year's survey, conducted informally by volunteers stationed near the exit with clipboards, asked one question: "Did you pay for your haircut today?" All 340 respondents answered no.

"I want to be clear, nobody handed me a bill," said Karen Whelton, 38, of the town's east side, who brought her two sons, ages 7 and 9, for their first haircuts of the school year. "It was free, like it said it would be. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop and it just never did."

A Pattern Emerges

Whelton said she checked her bank statement Monday morning "out of habit" and confirmed no charge had posted from the Alliant Energy Center, a business she had not previously had a reason to distrust but had, she said, "learned to be careful around" after a series of unrelated experiences with other local promotions.

She was not alone. Of the 340 families surveyed, 312 volunteered, unprompted, that they had specifically anticipated some form of fee, upsell, or "suggested donation" and were surprised when none materialized. Nine families reported bringing cash "just in case," which went unused. Four reported bringing a checkbook.

"The word 'free' accurately described the actual cost. That was always the intention."

— Linda Hoffman, Back to School Free Haircutz event coordinator

Event coordinator Linda Hoffman, 54, who has organized the haircut giveaway since its founding, confirmed the accounts. "The word 'free' in the event title accurately described the actual cost of participating," Hoffman said Monday. "That was always the intention. I don't think there's a more complicated way to say it."

A Call For Disclaimers

Even so, a group of parents who met informally in the Alliant Energy Center parking lot Sunday afternoon has begun circulating a petition asking that future Free Haircutz events include a printed disclaimer stating plainly that the event's name means what it says. As of Monday evening the petition, hosted on a shared sign-up sheet clipped to a stylist's supply cart, had 61 signatures.

"I'm not saying I don't believe them," said petition organizer Dave Renkas, 44, of Springdale, whose daughter received a haircut Saturday. "I'm saying I would feel better with it in writing, in bold, maybe with an asterisk that just says 'no asterisk.'"

Hoffman said she would take the request "under advisement" but noted that the event has used the word "free" in its title, uncontested, for 18 consecutive years without incident. "At some point," she said, "the track record has to count for something."

What Happens Next

Whelton said she planned to attend again next year, "assuming nothing changes," and added that she had already told three neighbors about the event, each of whom expressed the same initial skepticism she had. She said she now considered herself something of an ambassador for the concept that a free event can, in practice, be free.

Her sons, for their part, said the haircuts were fine. Neither had an opinion on the pricing structure.