WOODBURY — A freshman at Nonnewaug High School has recently picked up a unique hobby – and it might not be what you think.

Freshman Matthew Eureka has been getting more noticed recently by his friends, neighbors and family for the way he trims hair.

“I trust him,” said freshman Ervin Llenga. “I think I was his first haircut and ever since then he’s been cutting my hair.”

Eureka says his haircutting side hustle isn’t about money; it’s about making people happy.

“It’s more of a passion I think,” Eureka said. “The best thing about doing this is the reaction I get once the cut is done. As long as I can make someone smile after coming to me, that’s all I need.”

Although Eureka’s skill has only got positive feedback, many friends ask how he balances this with school.

“In eighth grade, I hit a little dead end,” said Eureka. “My grades started to slip a little and I found it hard to balance school, haircuts, and sports.” 

Noticing this, Eureka decided that haircuts need to take a backseat. 

“I started to realize that I needed to make a change in my schoolwork so I started to prioritize school first over haircuts,” said Eureka.

Once summer came around, Eureka noticed that he had a lot more time to do what he wanted now that he didn’t have to focus on school. 

“When school ended I started to get the most business I ever had,” said Eureka. “I still remember one time I had five haircuts in one day over the summer.”

It seems like summer coming around is just what Eureka needed to really take off.

“I always believed in him,” said Llenga. “He definitely took a big jump once school ended.”

“I think Matt is a great kid,” said freshman Zach Santopietro. “Every time I go down to get a haircut from him, he’s always in a positive mood and he always does a great job with my hair.”

This is a common theme among his customers, and Eureka doesn’t seem to be anywhere close to stopping.

“When I first went to Matt, people called me crazy and said I was totally wasting my time,” said freshman Max Dmitriyev, “but now that people see what he can do, they can’t get enough of him.”