Somewhere a child suffering from a medical condition will wear a wig made from the hair of a red-headed skateboarder from Oak Harbor.

After growing out his hair for nearly three years, 14-year-old Charlie Krieg summoned up the courage this month to go to Hairtrends for an extreme haircut. His mother, Bambi, accompanied him for emotional, and monetary, support.

Instead of allowing the curly locks to fall to the floor, Krieg asked the stylist to save his foot-long hair strands in a plastic bag. He’s donating the hair to Locks of Love, a nonprofit group that provides hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children suffering from long-term medical hair loss.

Hairstylist Sissy Brown said she’s cut hair for Locks of Love a number of times before, but this was the first time the long-haired donor was a boy.

Krieg admits that he’s taken a lot of flack about his lengthy, dare-say attractive hair from family, teachers, coaches, and especially friends, but it was usually given and taken in good humor.

“Everybody always joked around about my hair,” he said.

Krieg started growing his hair out when he was in sixth grade, but not for any specific reason. Perhaps in fit in with the polite, quiet boy’s skateboarding image.

Krieg is an avid skateboarder who’s skated in parks and on other impervious surface from Canada to California. He has met several professional skaters and even skated with them in their parks.

A few weeks ago, he won first place in the advanced class of the annual skateboard competition sponsored by Gizmo’s Skate Shop in Oak Harbor. The store is owned by former News-Times reporter Terrill Simeki.

Krieg is also sponsored by Gizmo’s and skates on the store’s team. Gizmo’s has a video coming out in a few weeks, featuring Krieg with his long, flowing mane.

This summer, Krieg and his short hair, along with four friends — Mike Bighouse, Dillon Johnson, Jason Radke and Dan Hernandez — are taking a month-long trip to Spain. The boys will be staying with Christian Hausendorff, who was an exchange student at Oak Harbor High School.

For Krieg, skating Barcelona will no doubt be one of the biggest thrills on his life.

Sitting in the barber chair, Krieg seemed pretty nonchalant about getting his lengthy and well-known hair cut. His mother, however, said she was sad to see his his hair go, but was looking forward to watch him grow it out again.

She said he looked different with short hair.

“He looks older,” she said. “That’s what I don’t like.”

Locks of Love accepts hair that is a minimum of 10 inches long. Hair may be colored or permed, but not bleached or chemically damaged.

The organization’s Web site, at www.locksoflove.org, has a downloadable hair donation form.

You can reach Jessie Stensland at jstensland@whidbeynewstimes.com or 675-6611.