Day: Thirteen
Organization: Beauty Bus Foundation
Activity: Beauty Buddy
One of my tips on getting involved in service is to talk to your friends and family about what they do, as it might inspire you or introduce you to an organization. Well, today was proof of how effective that can be. In planning my thirty days, I asked many of my friends if they had any ideas for me and I got lots of responses. One of the most interesting was from my longtime friend Kathy who mentioned the Beauty Bus Foundation, an organization that provides simple beauty procedures for the terminally ill. I immediately jumped at the chance to work with them.
I think most of us would agree that simple things like getting a haircut or a manicure can immediately make you feel a bit better about yourself. And, if you are down with a cold or the flu, sometimes just getting out of bed and getting dressed or combing your hair can help mentally and physically. Come to think of it, that must be why grandmothers always have lipstick close at hand — “putting their lips on,” even if everything else is a bit off, just makes them feel better and more presentable.
Well, for many who are terminally ill, things like getting haircuts and manicures are a challenge. Many can’t leave their homes and some can’t afford such services, while their caretakers also often can’t get out of the house for a bit of pampering. That’s where Beauty Bus comes in — they send a beauty professional and a buddy to patients’ homes to perform beauty treatments and the impact goes far beyond the physical. Today, I served as a Beauty Buddy and what I saw was much more than a sick man getting a haircut, I saw a kind man’s spirits lifted a bit because he knew he looked better, thus felt a bit better. Not sure what’s better than that!
Check out the video to hear more about my day, the beauty professional I was paired with the family we served.