‘Help a Hero’ by getting a haircut

For a limited time, getting a haircut will help service members and veterans find good-paying jobs once they exit the armed forces.

Sport Clips annual “Help a Hero” campaign kicks off Monday and, until Veterans Day on Nov. 11, getting a haircut at any of their 1,700 locations will help raise $1 million to benefit a Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW)-administered scholarship program. For every haircut, the company will donate $1 to the scholarship.

“We’ve fought hard to expand the Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits, protecting and expanding educational benefits for future generations,” said VFW National Commander Keith Harman. “Together with Sport Clips’ support, we will continue to ensure today’s service members and veterans receive every opportunity for success, one scholarship at a time.”

The program, started in 2013 by the VFW and Sport Clips, supplies up to $5,000 of assistance to qualified individuals who have served in the military and are pursuing an education at post-secondary institutions. To date, the partnership has raised more than $3 million and awarded more than 800 scholarships.

“The first Help A Hero Scholarship recipients are completing their studies and securing meaningful work,” Sport Clips Founder and CEO Gordon Logan, an Air Force veteran and VFW Life member said in a statement. “It’s fulfilling to see them employed, helping others, supporting themselves and their families, and reaching career goals with the help of these scholarships. Even though the GI Bill has been recently updated, it still doesn’t cover all the expenses many veterans have when they return from active duty and enroll in school. Privately funded scholarships are critical to numerous veterans when they seek further education. This is one of the best ways we can say ‘thank you’ for what these men and women have given to our country, and it’s an honor to serve them through the support of these scholarships.”

Many stores will also offer free haircuts to service members and veterans on Veteran’s Day.