Recovering Straughn student donates hair

Published 12:04 am Wednesday, June 10, 2015

Matt Worley is shown here after his hair was cut by Wynette Mitchell (right). | Courtesy photo

Matt Worley is shown here after his hair was cut by Wynette Mitchell (right). | Courtesy photo

The first thing Matt Worley did after he got his stitches and staples removed from his head was get a haircut — a haircut for a good cause.

Worley, who was run over by a car the Friday before graduation, donated five 8-inch lengths of his hair to Pantene’s Beautiful Lengths.

“It feels pretty good,” Worley said. “I mean knowing that I don’t need the hair, and you know, if I don’t need it, somebody else does.”

At the beginning of last summer, Worley started growing his hair out after Bailey Byrd and the late Megan Kelley’s cancers came back.

“He goes to church with Bailey Byrd and also went with Megan Kelley before she passed away,” Matt’s mom, Shea, said. “He hasn’t cut it since the beginning of last summer.”

Shea said Pantene stuck out to Matt the most.

“He researched a lot of groups as far as who helps kids the most,” she said. “Pantene had the most rewards and didn’t charge the patients for the wigs.”

Worley said after his ordeal, it feels pretty good to give his hair away, especially when he thought he was going to lose his hair in the first place.

“When they told me I could keep my hair, I was like ‘great,’” he said. “When I woke up from surgery, I still had my hair, and my plan was still in place.”

Worley said he feels like he’s lost 5 pounds.

“I feel light headed,” he quipped.

Shea said the stitches and staples came out of her son’s head on Tuesday, and they are having to go back to the hospital in Mobile twice a week for wound care.

“He still has burns on his back and ankle they’re still taking care of,” she said. “We were told today that he’s healing enough that we don’t have to have skin grafts.”

Shea said the treatments will last another three to four weeks, and then Worley will have to go through physical therapy for his shoulder.