FORT MYERS, Fla. (May 8, 2014) – More than a dozen hairstylists from The Rock for Hair and Nails in Fort Myers raised $5,000 during this year’s Stylists Unite to Help Cut Hunger cut-a-thon held on Sunday, April 6.

Benefiting the Harry Chapin Food Bank, the event included the volunteer efforts of nearly 200 local hairstylists as well as Redken’s national and international artists Brayden Pelletier, Ryan Morgan, Leah Hanson and Matrix’s artist Tara Koening.

Nonperishable food items were also collected at participating salons including The Rock. The event raised $14,000. The Harry Chapin Food Bank can turn $14,000 into $84,000 worth of food, which can feed people for months.

“This will be an annual event that gets bigger and better each year,” said Kristi Hyde, hair stylist and owner of The Rock. “Every time I say I’m hungry, I think about some child in our community who has not eaten since he or she left school, and that is our motivation for supporting this cause.”

Formerly known as the Lee County Food Cooperative, the Harry Chapin Food Bank of Southwest Florida opened in 1983 and has served as the only food bank in Southwest Florida. Its mission is to overcome hunger in Charlotte, Collier, Glades, Hendry and Lee counties through education and by working in a cooperative effort with affiliated agencies in the procurement and distribution of food, equitably and without discrimination.

The Harry Chapin Food Bank has partnered with more than 150 agencies that provide direct services to those in need, including church food pantries, soup kitchens, emergency shelters, disaster relief agencies and more. Today, the food bank provides food for more than 30,000 individuals each month. In 2013 alone, it distributed 17.5 million pounds of food, provided 14.6 million meals and turned every $1 into $6 worth of food for those in need.

Located at 12575 S. Cleveland Ave, Suite 8 in Fort Myers, The Rock features a staff of beauty professionals offering men, women and children a full menu of hair and nail services and products.

For more information, contact Kristi Hyde at 239-462-2620 or kristihyde@msn.com.