Being a parent is rewarding for sure, but it can also be downright frightening sometimes! There’s nothing that a doting parent wouldn’t do for his or her little one. Spending countless sleepless nights and still having breakfast ready on time, picking out the right clothes, buying safe toys, and more often than not, rising to some rather unusual challenges!
For Greg Wickherst of Pueblo, Colorado, being a single dad meant stepping entirely out of his comfort zone. Raising a girl on your own is hard work, especially when the requests to play dress-up and have tea parties start coming in.
Greg’s life revolves around his daughter and little princess, Izzy. While he has been able to handle most parental duties, one big dilemma had him stumped.
In this wholesome father and daughter tale, let’s find out to what great lengths a parent’s love can go.
The Beginning – A Ponytail!
Greg worked as an admissions representative at a local college. This divorced dad had been raising his princess alone, maintaining one hairstyle for two and a half years: the little girl bangs. After a while, though, Izzy started to have other hair preferences.
In an interview with USA Today’s All the Moms, Greg shared:
“I didn’t want to keep cutting her bangs and be a tom boy forever. I wanted to be a more involved parent, and she wanted to be a girly-girl.”
In a ludicrous attempt by social standards, he decided to make the most daring move a father can for his daughter.
During his lunch break, Greg decided to pay a visit to the cosmetology department of the college he worked for. Though he was an alien to this environment, he was warmly welcomed by a group of students. And thus began his crash course on hairstyling.
He learned a lot.
To showcase his newly acquired skill, Greg shared images of Izzy sporting his hairstyling masterpieces on Instagram. And no, it’s much more than just your typical ponytail.
The Journey Has Just Begun.
To keep surprising Izzy with new hairstyles, Greg continued to spend lunch breaks at the cosmetology room where the students became his mentors.
His new endeavor led to quite a few raised eyebrows. Even the customers of the school salon found it odd but he didn’t let them bring him down. This was, after all, for his daughter.
Hairstyling baffled him at first. Those intricate hairstyles seemed complicated to say the least, but Greg was pleasantly surprised by how simple many of the designs were.
It’s More Than A Hairstyle.
To Greg, learning how to do Izzy’s hair was a way for them to be closer. Their bond became stronger with every hairstyle he set out to do for her. What’s more, Izzy started experimenting with her own hair and even with make-up—making her father the canvas!
This experience gave Greg fresh perspectives and realizations.
In an interview with Insider, he shared:
“It’s not about being perfect…It’s about being present. Doing your daughter’s hair is not a competition. It’s really just to make her feel confident, make her feel proud. And really a way to help bond with your kids.”
The Hair Dad.
Because of his uncommon yet heartwarming story, Greg is now officially known as ‘The Hair Dad’ despite having a shaved head for most of his adult life. You can follow his hairstyling journey and fun moments with Izzy on his Instagram account which now has 21.6k followers, or through his YouTube channel with 14.4k subscribers.
Greg’s happy to share what he has learned. He hopes that other fathers will also use this unique opportunity to strengthen their bonds with their daughters.
Many dads from Greg’s community have already been inspired to break the stereotype and start stepping up their hair game. They’re taking hairstyling lessons from Greg and we can’t wait to see the adorable results of their efforts!
After all, no one in this world can love a girl more than her father does.
