This 1966 photo of a young Grand Junction girl has found its way home. Thanks to you, the featured subject has been located.

Before long, the 12-year-old girl in the photo, now a grown woman in her mid-60s, will have this Robert Grant art show print hanging on her wall.

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Starting From Scratch

I reached out to you on August 3, 2021, with a request to help me get this picture back to the subject. The original post read:

The image above was taken by late Daily Sentinel photographer Robert Grant. It features a young lady who had just had a lengthy chunk of blonde ponytail cut. Unfortunately, I have no idea who the brave little girl is, when the picture was taken, or where it was taken.

Has Seen The Light of Day

When my grandpa, Bob Grant, former chief photographer at the Daily Sentinel, died in November 2000, I inherited all of his prints, negatives, and photography equipment. Somewhere in the middle of all that I found a box of prints on thick cardstock Bob had used in a Kodak art show sometime back in the late 1960s. This print was among them. Unfortunately, as is the case with all of those art prints, I had no knowledge as to the subject matter.

Roughly ten years ago I organized (or disorganized, depending on how you look at it) a handful of Robert Grant photos showing around the valley. This print was included. Not long ago I rediscovered it and thought it would be fun to find out who the little girl is.

Hair Cut photo 3
Robert Grant
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Secret Identity has Been Revealed

Thanks to social media, specifically a Facebook page known as "You Know You're From Grand Junction When...," the subject was identified and located.

Moved on Down the Road

The young lady in the photo is none other than Julie Gregory Gorwoda, now a resident of Albuquerque, New Mexico. Julie reached out to me on Messenger, and here's what she had to say:

Regarding your questions about the photo, Waylon Jordan, it was taken when I was 12 and got my long hair cut for the first time. The year would've been the Summer of 1966. I got it cut because I was ready for a new style. It was 46 or 48 inches when it got cut. I think the beauty shop called your grandfather and told them I was coming in. Your grandfather called my mother and asked if he could shoot it.

Plans for that Magnificent Ponytail

Julie adds, "Back then, there was no such thing as "Locks of Love" who would receive human hair and make it into wigs for cancer patients."

What Became of the Hair?

According to Julie, "I took the braid home and found it in a box about 10 years ago and threw it away. Who wants nearly 50-yr old hair?"

That's one down, about 250,000 more to go.

Well, one more print has found its way back to the subject. Only about a quarter-million to go. My house features an office and an entire storage area dedicated to sorting, filing, and scanning Robert Grant photos and negatives. My dad spent the last 20 years of his life trying to sort through these images. Since his passing, I've taken over, albeit slowly. Be on the lookout for the next classic Grand Junction photo to emerge, searching for those featured.

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