Area Stylists To Volunteer Their Time for "Courage From Kyle"

Get Buzzed, a barber shop in Lanoka Harbor is asking area residents to "get buzzed for a cause" from May 20, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.

Stylists from this shop and others in the area will volunteer their time, giving haircuts to men, women and children who stop by the salon during the designated 7 hours, and Get Buzzed will donate 50 percent of all proceeds to "Courage From Kyle," an organization that started off as "Courage For Kyle," a support network for Kyle McGetrick, who was diagnosed with leukemia at the age of 5 and died last week at the age of 12.

The organization, which had changed its name, upon one of Kyle's last requests, to "Courage From Kyle," offers scholarships, help and support to other local kids with cancer, which, the volunteers involved in the fundraiser say, is the best way to honor Kyle's legacy.

"Just a couple of weeks ago, my son texted me that Kyle was in school," said Debbie Perrine, 40, of Barnegat, who is a stylist at Get Buzzed. "My son was like, 'I can't believe he's here, and he looks so good, he's so strong.'"

And that's the way Perrine said the town would remember him.

"He was always upbeat, no matter what," she said.

April Gomes, Perrine's colleague ssaid her daughter also went to school with Kyle. "My daughter used to see him in school with the mask on his face," Gomes said. "She's been very upset since he died, even though she didn't know him personally."

"It hits close to home," Gomes said. "I don't think kids think that kids die."

For Gomes and her colleagues, who will be buzzing and styling anyone who drops in on Sunday, getting involved in the fundraiser is a way to turn heartbreak into hope.

The haircuts will cost $12, and coffee and refreshments will be served. Area businesses, including Sweet Jenny's in Barnegat and Belladonna Salon and The Pretzel Factory in Manahawkin have donated door prizes for the event.

Get Buzzed, 335 Route 9 North, is located across the Lacey ShopRite in Lanoka Harbor.