RIVER FALLS – Taggart Havens is a River Falls kid with not only a big mullet, but a big heart. He, like Ellsworth resident Otto Jakes, is hoping to make it to the final round of the 2023 Kids …
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RIVER FALLS – Taggart Havens is a River Falls kid with not only a big mullet, but a big heart. He, like Ellsworth resident Otto Jakes, is hoping to make it to the final round of the 2023 Kids Mullet Showdown. Perhaps more importantly, if he wins the grand prize, he’ll donate the money to his friend, who is fighting cancer.
The 2023 Kids Mullet Showdown is a fundraising event (online) through Jared Allen Homes for Wounded Warriors, a charity that helps provide mortgage-free, accessible homes to wounded veterans. Each vote, which needs to be cast on each contestant’s page, and donations raise the chances of the contestants moving on to the next round. Voters can vote for their favorite mullets once per day.
Havens made it through the first round of voting into the top 100 kids. Voting closed Monday, July 24. If Havens garners enough votes, he’ll be in the Top 25.
“Regardless of how he finishes, this has been a tremendous victory for him and a boost of his self-esteem,” said his mother Jessica Kramer.
Havens started growing his mullet four years ago when he was 6.
“I grew my mullet because it was how I wanted my hair to look,” Havens said. “It felt like me. It brings pride to me.”
His tagline on his contest page is the “El Co Flo,” or the Camino Kid. He started growing it for hockey and when people at his school said his mullet was ugly, he vowed to prove them wrong.
“I want to prove them wrong by entering the mullet competition and showing them that lots of people think my hair is cool and unique,” Havens said. “I like how my mullet flows out of the back of my hockey helmet when I skate fast. It feels like my super power and I won’t let anyone tell me otherwise.”
Havens said his friends and family think his mullet looks “rad,” even if some kids at school don’t think so.
Kramer said Havens has raised $900 for the Wounded Warriors charity. Havens has a friend who was a fighter pilot who is committed to the cause, as well as family and friends who are veterans.
After the competition, Havens plans to cut his hair for a very special reason – but rest assured, he plans to grow it back and enter the contest again next year.
“I will cut it for my friend Coby who has cancer right now and is in chemotherapy,” Havens said. “Coby is a friend from hockey; he’s our team’s goalie. He’s a really good person, and he’s really special. He couldn’t go to the state tournament this year and we all played in his honor. We placed second in the state! And we had a cardboard cutout of him that we put behind the bench during every game. We all wore his number (17) on our helmets. I’m going to donate my hair to Wigs For Kids after this contest is finished.”
Havens is serious when he says if he wins the competition, he’ll win it for Coby. And if he wins the $5,000 grand prize, he will donate it to Coby’s charity; he said he might keep $50.
Coby Clark, 10, is a member of the River Falls Youth Hockey Association Squirt B team. He has a brain tumor and has gone through many seizures. People can donate to Coby’s medical expenses at https://gofundme.df4a1be0
Other local contestants included Otto Jakes and Daxton Passe of Ellsworth and Boone Erlandson of Beldenville. Jakes is the only Ellsworth trio member to advance to the second round.
Follow the contest results at www.mulletchamp.com
