Libertyville salon gives free makeovers to special ed kids

As if she were unveiling a sculpture or a fine painting, hair stylist Lisa Bauer slowly spins 20-year-old Tiffany Strandberg's chair around so she can check out her new hairdo in a large mirror.

"What do you think?" Bauer asks.

Strandberg's response is a mere one syllable -- three little letters, really -- but it says plenty.

"Wow!" she exclaims happily.

Strandberg, of Mundelein, was one of 10 developmentally or physically disabled young women who received complimentary hair and makeup sessions Friday at AC Hair Design in Libertyville.

Two stylists with the salon and two independent Mary Kay beauty consultants donated their time and products for the effort, which preceded a Special Education District of Lake County homecoming dance Friday night.

The event was the brainchild of Mundelein resident Ronna "Jake" Ellwing, a registered nurse with SEDOL who's also one of Bauer's customers.

"Our young ladies don't usually get a chance to go somewhere and get their hair done and get their makeup done," Ellwing said. "I thought it would be fun."

That it was. The girls loved being pampered, from the curls added to their hair to the lipstick and eye shadow added to their faces.

Their moms -- watching from a nearby alcove -- loved it, too.

"Oh my gosh, the girls look gorgeous," said Libertyville's Cheryl Wickland, whose daughter, Taylor, participated.

Mundelein resident Nancy Braun beamed when her daughter, Rikki, finished with the stylists.

"You look pretty," Braun told her daughter. "You look really pretty."

For Bauer, the sessions were emotionally overwhelming. She was struck by how happy the moms were when they saw their girls.

"It makes me feel like I'm giving back to the community," she said, "and helping people who maybe are a little less fortunate to be treated like everybody else."