MOOSEHEART, IL, Feb. 17 - Just in case donating money to help the victims of the Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti didn't make people feel good enough, Mooseheart's Cosmetology students have gone that extra mile to make sure people have an awesome feeling about their good works.

This week, the Cosmetology vocational students at Mooseheart have been giving haircuts and mini-manicures to Mooseheart and Moose International employees, with any proceeds going to support Haitian earthquake relief efforts. So far, donations have reached nearly $100.

"It was a very enjoyable day," Mooseheart Cosmetology teacher Dodie Whitmer said. "The kids enjoy doing this sort of thing. It's also good for them to be working with adults instead of with kids all the time."

The students gave haircuts and manicures on Tuesday (Feb. 16) and were much busier on Wednesday. They will continue to do so on Thursday, the final day of the three-day effort.

"We felt this was a creative way to get people to get some kind of service that would benefit them as well as the overall benefit for the relief effort for Haiti," Mooseheart Superintendent of Education Gary Urwiler said.

Mooseheart's Cosmetology students give haircuts to all their fellow students. For special events, such as the annual Military Ball or Prom, these same students give their female classmates "up-do" hairstyling.

But the initiative to raise funds for victims of Haiti's earthquake brought the Cosmetology class in contact with non-students in a way that should prove beneficial for any who chose to enter the field after they graduate.

"We cut a lot of children's hair," Urwiler said. "But in that profession, you have to be ready to speak and to hold a conversation with many different types of people. We are pretty limited sometimes just talking to students."

In late January, Mooseheart Executive Director Scott Hart was put in touch with officials from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and he extended the offer of a temporary home for up to 50 children orphaned in the Jan. 12 Haitian earthquake, which killed more than 200,000 and left thousands more homeless.  Exactly when, or even whether, Mooseheart will ultimately be able to exercise its offer of care for Haitian children remains uncertain, given the extensive caution that the Haitian government is reportedly taking in authorizing the departure of any of its children from the island nation.

Various Mooseheart school groups have organized efforts to raise earthquake relief money. A recent cupcake sale raised $460.

"I think our students are excited and anticipate the possibility of the arrival of children from Haiti," Hart said. "The hard part is to sit back and wait and see if it will come to fruition. There is an anticipation after the cupcake sales that there is a way to give back to someone who is in need."

Mooseheart has roughly 220 children and teens in its care, but Urwiler said the size of the school doesn't say anything about the willingness to raise what money it can.

"It's our way of what we're doing here," Urwiler said. "We're seeing a lot of people pull together across the United States and the world. What we're seeing here is that our students are saying 'we're going to do our share. We're not too small or too insignificant.' The amount we've raised is not insignificant and we're going it with the joy of giving and of helping someone in need."

Founded in 1913, Mooseheart is supported completely through private donations - the great majority of which come from the 1.1 million men and women of the Moose fraternal organization, in more than 1,800 Lodges and 1,600 Chapters located throughout the U.S. , Canada , Great Britain and Bermuda . Moose International headquarters is located on the Mooseheart campus.

Since its founding, Mooseheart has operated a complete, accredited kindergarten-through-high-school academic program, plus art, music, vocational training and interscholastic sports. It is an extremely nurturing and student-tailored program, with an average student-teacher ratio of 12-1.

Mooseheart students who complete their studies with a 3.0 GPA or better (4.0=A) are eligible for up to five years of annually renewable scholarship funding, covering tuition, room and board in an amount comparable to that required for an in-state student at an Illinois public university.

Mooseheart's students range in age from preschoolers to high school seniors. Applications for admission to Mooseheart are considered from any family whose children are, for whatever reason, lacking a stable home environment. Mooseheart boasts its own U.S. Post Office and a fully functioning branch of Fifth Third Bank.
 
In addition to Mooseheart, Moose International also supports Moosehaven, a 70-acre retirement community near Jacksonville , FL founded in 1922; and conducts more than $90 million worth of community service programs annually.

Founded in 1888, the Moose organization has long offered its members an opportunity to do good for others while celebrating life, with family, social, and sporting activities. For more information on the Moose organization, visit www.mooseintl.org, www.mooseheart.org, www.moosehaven.org, or call 630-966-2229.