Community comes together to fulfill last-minute back-to-school needs – Frederick News Post (subscription)

Tekeisha Gibson wanted to pay for two girls in Frederick to get their hair done for the start of the school year, so she posted a message to Facebook last Monday.

Then, her cousin, a master barber, said she would donate 25 haircuts. From there, the grass-roots initiative grew into an event with more than 75 Frederick residents and children coming to the Lincoln Apartments Community Center on Sunday for haircuts, socks, school supplies and money for athletic fees.

“God has been so good to me and my kids that I like to give back,” Gibson said.

Her cousin Rhonda Douglass brushed hair off Zaire Green’s neck after giving him a haircut. Having done back-to-school haircuts before, Douglass said she particularly likes to educate children on how to properly take care of their hair.

“I just love giving back,” she said. “I love cutting hair. It’s my passion. It’s two-fold for me.”

Zaire, 5, attends Spring Ridge Elementary School, said his father, Jerome Green. Green has 13 children and said because raising children can be stressful for a single parent, the event helps. He pitched in to organize it.

Green wants to organize additional community events like Sunday’s and get more men in the community involved.

“I’m trying to get more guys to come in and help. There’s a lot of women raising kids,” he said.

The Rev. Derek Shackelford, who lives in Frederick, said he donated school supplies, kitchen supplies and financial resources. He used to be the city of Frederick’s director of Youth Services years ago, and now is a pastor in Baltimore.

“You want to be elevated. You need to be educated,” he said, addressing a group of children before him.

Gibson said African-American hairstyles are expensive, so she wanted to donate the haircuts to help the children feel good. Milan 321 stylists, as well as Tatiana Saunders, a Frederick resident who graduated from The Temple cosmetology school, came out to make Gibson’s idea a reality.

A handful of women braided and styled girls’ hair in one corner of the community room.

“It’s fun,” Saunders said. “I like to help. It puts a smile on their face.”

One mother, Kristie Foster, said the event is a blessing.

“It gives the kids something maybe they weren’t able to have if they didn’t come here,” she said.

Ayesha Johnson works for the Housing Authority of the City of Frederick and was able to get the space at the community center donated.

“It was something that was needed,” she said. “We were just looking to fill in the blanks of what people needed.”

The organizers also invited officers from Frederick City Police Department.

“I wanted kids to interact with them so they know they’re safe,” Gibson said.

Officer Corey Borns said any opportunity to be with the community is a good one.

It all just came together in four days, Johnson and Gibson said.

“Just how fast the community reacted, it just amazed me,” Gibson said.

Follow Brandi Bottalico on Twitter:@brandibot.

from Hairstylez http://cityhairstyle.xyz/community-comes-together-to-fulfill-last-minute-back-to-school-needs-frederick-news-post-subscription/