‘Quarantine Haircut’ Raises $11K for Batavia Food Pantry

BATAVIA, IL — The Batavia Interfaith Food Pantry will be able to provide thousands of meals to people in need during the state’s coronavirus lockdown thanks to one Batavia man’s small “hair sacrifice.” Nick Ninedorf raised more than $11,000 for the food pantry through his “Quarantine Haircut for Charity” Facebook page.

Like so many people over the past month, Ninedorf saw his hair getting a bit too long and began to consider his options. With all barbershops and hair salons shut down due to stay-at-home orders, either Ninedorf or his wife, Karly, would have to do the deed.

After talking things over with Karly, Ninedorf launched his Facebook fundraiser and donations quickly started rolling in. In just a week, Ninedorf raised $11,138 from 163 donors, according to the Facebook page. Ninedorf said a friend chipped in the first $1,000 to make him commit to the idea.

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Ninedorf inspired people to donate by promising progressively worse haircuts at each funding tier. If the donations totaled less than $1,000, Ninedorf said he would get his “normal, boring financial advisor haircut.” But if donors raised between $5,000 and $7,500, he promised to rock a bowl cut.

Unfortunately for Ninedorf, the donations quickly topped the $10,000 mark, meaning he will wear the infamous hairstyle of “Seinfeld” character George Costanza for at least a week. Ninedorf has also promised to do a photoshoot with his new hairdo.

Ninedorf said his wife has never cut hair before but “it’s a bad haircut anyways, so if you do a bad job, you did a better job.” The “quarantine haircut” will be broadcast on Facebook at noon Sunday, when Ninedorf will see his bare scalp for the first time in his life.

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The financial advisor, who serves on the Batavia Chamber of Commerce’s board of directors, said he chose to direct the donations to the Batavia Interfaith Food Pantry due to his love for the city and the pantry’s ability to stretch funding to serve as many as possible.

“The food pantry is something that we can all get behind and they need us now more than ever,” Ninedorf said. He added director Eileen Pasero said the Batavia Interfaith Food Pantry can purchase $8 of food for just $1, meaning Ninedorf’s haircut effectively raised nearly $90,000 to support the pantry's efforts.

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In a comment on the fundraiser’s Facebook page, Pasero thanked Ninedorf for launching the campaign and told him, “You’re going to help feed so many of our neighbors!”

“His sense of humor and willing spirit bring some much-needed comic relief during this challenging time — and his ‘hair sacrifice’ will go a long way towards helping people in our community who are facing economic uncertainty and food insecurity,” Pasero wrote.

Ninedorf will continue accepting donations through the fundraiser’s Facebook page until his haircut Sunday. Much of the money has been raised through small donations, he said, encouraging people to donate $5 or $10 if they can. Even if they can’t, he’s more than happy to provide a little entertainment and raise some spirits.

In terms of his exit strategy from the Costanza haircut, Ninedorf said he’s just hoping his hair grows back quickly.