BROOKINGS — Families have plenty to juggle before the start of the school year — and getting kids haircuts isn’t always a top priority. This Sunday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., three Brookings businesspeople are teaming up to ensure at least a couple dozen local kids will get free haircuts through a program they call “Looking Cool Before School.”

“So it’s kind of a brain child of mine,” Shane Andersen, local realtor with Century 21 Krogman & Co., said. “Alicia (Springer) from The Man Cave and Tonya (Beynon) from Reflections Hair Designs have teamed up with me. And three hours we thought was going to be long enough, so every hour … in fifteen minute blocks, those two will have somebody sitting in their chair getting a haircut. There’s 24 slots available in that three hour period.”

To find families who might need help with back-to-school haircuts, he reached out to Brookings Area United Way and the Brookings County Youth Mentoring Program.

“I said, ‘hey can you kind of help too?’ Let’s spread the word,” Andersen said. “As soon as we were ready and thought we had everything in place, I sent the message to United Way and Brookings County Youth Mentoring Program — and within an hour they were full. We didn’t even have time to put it on social media or anything. So their help just setting it out there that one time, it just showed how much need there is for something like this.”

While kids wait their turn for haircuts, there will also be a free meal served.

“We’re going to be grilling hot dogs — doing a hot dog, chip and beverage meal for the families,” Andersen said. “One of the things that I was able to work out with United Way is those dental hygiene packages that they give out every once in a while — so each kids that gets a haircut will get a dental hygiene bag that has toothpaste, and you know floss and anything that has to do with that.”

He said Springer and Beynon were enthusiastic when he approached them, and the three hope to make an annual tradition out of this.

“They didn’t even hesitate — they said count us in!” Andersen said. “Obviously the need is out there. We’re hoping maybe it’ll be a bit bigger next year. We’ve got to make sure the logistics work pretty well. And yeah, we could be looking for some more help next year.”

Andersen said businesses interested in sponsoring or partnering with them next year should reach out to him. He said with how quickly slots filled up — plus the fact that they have a waiting list of families eager to get in if there’s a cancellation — they’d love to expand the program and serve more kids next year.

“I think it’s important for the kids to feel confident going to school the first day. It’s a new world, new people, new teachers,” Andersen said. “I know when I was a kid, your first day of school — no matter what grade, even into high school — it was spooky. You want to be confident, and you want to just be able to walk into that classroom knowing you’re ready for the day. And hopefully a clean haircut and looking good is a way to do that.”

In Brookings, the first day of school is Sept. 3.

Email Jay Roe at jroe@brookingsregister.com.