Local hair salon hosts fundraiser

Royale Hair Parlor dedicated a day of haircuts to a fundraiser Sunday for the annual Bloomington PRIDE Film Festival, an event devoted to screening GLBTQ-focused films at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater.

The salon also coordinated a silent auction to support the organization’s upcoming festival, scheduled to take place Jan. 23-25. Local businesses and organizations contributed gift certificates and other donations to be auctioned.

“I think I cut off a lot,” said Annie Corrigan, who had just received a pixie cut from salon owner Bridgett Vohland.

Corrigan is a regular customer at Royale and is planning on attending PRIDE’s film festival.

The weekend is a great opportunity to see films that would be hard to see elsewhere, she said.

“This was sort of a win-win scenario for me. I needed a haircut anyway, and it goes to a good cause,” Corrigan said.

Haircuts were offered from noon to 5 p.m. In two hours, 17 people came in for haircuts, and Royale raised $500 of their $1,200-$1,400 goal, not including funds raised from the silent auction.

Molly Lecount, a stylist at Royale, said she first started working at the salon partly because the business often donated money, time and space to philanthropic causes.

Vohland, the owner, sits on PRIDE’s board of directors. 

“One thing that attracted me to working at this salon was that [Vohland] uses her advertising dollars to support things she cares about,” Lecount said.

Sunday’s event was the third cut-a-thon the salon has arranged.

Royale also played host to a children’s art show to benefit Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children, commonly referred to as CASA. The salon took second place in a national charity challenge called Hairdressers at Heart and was awarded a $2,500 scholarship for its work with CASA.

Lecount said that PRIDE is expanding as an organization.

“PRIDE used to just be a once-a-year movie festival,” she said.

“Now they are planning year-round events. The reason we’re holding the benefit is to help them get the ball rolling.”

Abby Henkel, a co-director for PRIDE, said the program has been run by the Buskirk-Chumley Theater for the past ten years.

The Buskirk-Chumley’s executive director recently handed over the reins to Henkel, 27, and Sarah Perfetti, 29.

Henkel and Perfetti were one of thirteen couples to be married in last year’s LGBTQ wedding, a mass marriage event at the end of the opening day of the festival.

Now co-directors of the organization, the pair is working to expand PRIDE’s reach.

“Our goal is within a few years to have other programs, depending on what the community needs are,” said Perfetti.

The organization is starting to focus on working with queer youth, collaborating with Catholic Charities in providing therapy and support. Henkel and Perfetti also noted that many people had expressed interest in a summer Pride Parade.

Money from the fundraiser held on Sunday at Royale is intended to support the costs of screening the films, paying performers and paying the Buskirk-Chumley.

Henkel and Perfetti said the average cost of screening a full-length film is $600, and each of the 22 short films they hope to show at the festival cost $50-100. Excess funds will go towards fundraising for PRIDE’s other events.

Royale is also providing free makeovers on the opening day of the festival. Henkel and Perfetti said they have four participants signed up at the moment, but there might be more by the end of the week.

“People who want to do something different about their look will come to Royale for a consultation,” said Perfetti.

Henkel and Perfetti share a residence in Bloomington, and for the time being, their home is the headquarters of PRIDE. Both have full-time jobs, and commented that organizing the event has been a significant undertaking.

“We pretty much work all the time,” Henkel said. “It’s a lot of work, but it’s rewarding.”