A local bounty on Blago’s hair

Theresa Charo, a longtime salon owner in River Forest, is trying to get to the former governor’s heart from the top of his haute head.

Charo, owner of the namesake salon that had been on

“… if at any point between now and January 31, 2011, you are open to the idea of my shaving your head, I pledge to donate $1,000 to any charity that you designate.”

Yes, the long-term deadline does afford the ex-gov time to come to terms with such a weighty decision. It’s also in the month that his second term would have ended.

Should his entrepreneurial spirit turn charitable, Charo’s mission for charity would redefine her as a hair entrepreneur. From the storefront in Elmwood Park that she moved to three years ago, she’d go all-out selling the Blago locks.

To comb through any potential worries a man between jobs might have, she’s clear in her letter that she wouldn’t accept a gratuity for this service. “I am sensitive to the financial challenges you are now facing,” she writes.

Until the former governor figures out what the fluff is all about, Charo – who still is in the area, just across the River Forest line in Elmwood Park – will continue to tend to the ‘do of a local with a stronger connection to Springfield. She’s the stylist to Gov. Pat Quinn’s mom.

 Charo’s Hair Design & Day Spa is at

Staff reports