Windward Community College Chancellor Douglas Dykstra received a new haircut for a great cause.
Dykstra pledged he would shave his head if the college raised 7,000 pounds of food or dollars in the school’s 2013 food drive for Foodbank Hawaiʻi. Windward’s 2,800 students, faculty and staff easily surpassed that mark, $9,000 and two tons of food, tripling last year’s total.
“We like to present ourselves as the community’s college and I think this really proves it,” said Dykstra. “Really proves that commitment to the community.”
Dykstra proved he was a man of his word, even with his hair on the line. At a special event for the occasion, dozens of enthusiastic students, faculty and staff cheered him on as his gray locks fell to the floor.
“It’s just rewarding to see the distance our faculty members would go to get our school involved with the community,” said Windward CC student Hoʻopono Wong.
Dykstra credited drive coordinator Roy Inouye for the success of the campaign and has wholeheartedly embraced his new look.
“It’s brushy but cool,” said Dykstra with a smile.
“That was pretty funny,” said Wong. “He doesn’t look that bad without it. It was a real rewarding treat for everybody.”
It also strengthened the bonds that bind this already tight knit campus community, and it is all thanks to the simple act of helping those in need.
