A 62-year-old salon owner in Tampa Bay, Florida is giving free makeovers to homeless girls, suggesting that she want them to feel like princesses for a day.
Vanessa Howard, the owner of Giving Hands Hair Salon in Tampa Bay always makes time to give back to her community by treating young homeless girls to salon services that are free of charge, Cbs News reported.
It has been a habit for Howard to walk into her salon once a month to give free makeovers to homeless customers, the report added. The services included free trims, haircuts, facials, and manicures.
“We want them to feel like princesses for one day. I want them to be confident because when they are confident about themselves, they excel,” she said in the report. “It is important especially during their transition.”
Apart from the free hair services, her salon also provides beautiful tiaras and free school supplies to the girls to start anew. According to CBS News, even their parents get free makeovers.
Princess for a day
Howard asks assistance from her five daughters and a team of volunteers in the salon, the article added. She plans to pursue with this advocacy in the coming years. She believes that it is worth it to see smile radiate from these little girls who receive her services, the report went on further.
The owner of a hair salon in Florida has helped over 275 homeless women and children over the past four years. https://t.co/rTS8occssA
— News 12 Now (@wdefnews12) August 4, 2017
“We want them to feel good about themselves. We did not want them to be conscious of the way they look,” she told CBS News.
She also launched a new project specifically designed for the opening of classes this year.
She reportedly launched “Back to School Princess Party,” which provides about five hours of pampering services to homeless girls ages five to 11.
“I know what they are going through, and this is why I do it. I want to help restore women and children because this is part of my purpose,” Howard continued in the report.
Former homeless mother
She also shared with CBS News that around 20 years ago, she was also a homeless single mother who only had about $2 in her name.
Howard reportedly had been a victim of domestic violence and gave birth to her first daughter while she was still a teenager. She left her unpleasant childhood environment, and at one point became allegedly suicidal.
“I cried out. I was tired of being homeless, and I always prayed for help,” she revealed in the article. From that moment on, she picked herself up and started her own salon.
Now, Giving Hands Hair Salon has helped around 275 homeless children to date, the report noted. It has since become her family’s bread and butter.
