Appomattox woman's surprise: styling Sarah Palin's hair

In case you missed it (and that would have been hard), former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin was in Lynchburg earlier this month to speak to the Extraordinary Women Conference at Liberty University.

Shawn Ramsey, of Appomattox, went as a spectator and a volunteer, never dreaming she would wind up as what might be called the Hair Apparent.

For word got around that Palin needed her hair done before her appearance onstage. And because that happens to be Ramseys profession (she is a stylist at Geneses, a beauty salon and fitness center she and her husband own in Appomattox), she was offered the opportunity. She accepted then prayed a little.

I didnt have anything to work with, she said. I just went straight to her hotel room.

But as Ramsey recalled recently, Palin immediately put her at ease.

It was just me, her and Todd [Palins husband] in the room, she said. Then we got into a conversation, and it seemed very natural.

Indeed, more often than not, if a famous person is removed from the spotlight and placed in a familiar setting (such as getting her hair styled), the public persona falls away and the celebrity becomes just a regular human being.

Thus, Sarah Palin didnt use her hour with Shawn Ramsey as an opportunity to make a political speech. Chances are they would have agreed on most issues anyway.

Rather, Ramsey said, She asked me a lot of questions about myself and my life. She told me about her kids. I told her about our gym, and we started talking about fitness.

In an earlier interview (in Appomattox, she became a celebrity once removed), Ramsey told Marvin Hamlett, of the weekly Times-Virginian: She initiated the conversation the whole time. And her husband was so cool. He mostly sat right with us, but he also took part in our conversations.

Of course, the bottom line was Palins medium-length brown hair, which needed to be blowdried, styled and curled.

I was surprised that a person in her position would trust someone ! she didn t know to do that, Ramsey said. Im not sure I would. But she was very appreciative.

Ramseys sister, Shana Canada, was also directly involved in the conference. Her musical group, the Shana Canada Band, did a prayer-and-worship set before Palins appearance.

Yet she didnt know her sisters contribution to the event until later.

I immediately thought about how great her hair looked, Canada told Hamlett.

As a stylist, Ramsey said, she often finds herself watching well-known women on TV and critiquing their hairstyles

Sometimes I find myself thinking, Ill bet I could make her look younger if I did this or that.

Of course, that was a theoretical exercise, the way some of us sit in front of our TV sets and rattle off the answers to Jeopardy questions. Given an actual celebrity to work with, Ramsey was more than happy to stick to the basics.

She really is a beautiful woman, she said of Palin. She is more beautiful in person than on television.

And on one occasion, Ramsey had something to do with that.

Its the high point of my career so far, she said.