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What started out as a discussion about job loss among friends some five weeks ago has snowballed into a national coiffure campaign, which kicks off in Charlotte this weekend.
The Hair Care effort will give free haircuts and style maintenance advice to those who are out of work during the event in Myers Park on Saturday and Sunday.
A sign promoting the event in a restaurant on Providence Road says “Don't let laid off become laid back.”
Hairstylist Maurice Tidy, former artistic director at Vidal Sassoon who now calls Charleston, S.C., home, created the campaign with friend Gina Caruso after she found herself unemployed.
“By doing what we do, we can give something back,” Tidy says. “We can do something to help those that are out of work feel good, help them feel a little on top of the world.”
Daniel Rizzardi and Tidy were colleagues at Sassoon who reconnected on Facebook, Rizzardi says. When he heard about Tidy's campaign, he immediately signed on, offering up his Secrets salon for the first event.
Rizzardi arrived in the U.S. from France in 1965. Five years later, he moved to Charlotte, where he's now considered an elder statesman of the salon scene in town.
“People (in Charlotte) have always been good to me, so if there was an occasion for me to give back, of course I'd do it,” Rizzardi says.
At least 25 stylists from salons across the Carolinas will donate their time behind the chair this weekend, working in shifts at Secrets. Consultations will be first come, first served. Organizers estimated the value of services will range from $50 to $300.
“There's not many ways we can give back from a sincere point of view,” Tidy says. “This is from the heart. (Our unemployed clients) need to feel better, need to feel good. Maybe they have an interview next week, and they don't know what to do. We'll try to do everything that is needed – color, cutting and telling them how to look after their hair.”
The campaign has been coming together at a stunning pace, Tidy says, and word is spreading fast. So far, there are plans to take the Hair Care cause to 14 cities, including Boston, Las Vegas and Miami.
“There are so many that just want to do it,” Tidy says. “It makes me proud of my industry.”
The charitable group, which is waiting for it's official 501 c-3 nonprofit status, may go international, too.
“(I just got) an e-mail from London. That shook me a little bit,” Tidy says.
Donate your footwear
Now through July 31, The Bag Lady in Dilworth is collecting gently worn shoes to donate to Sole4Souls, an international footwear charity that helps those in need around the world.
Every 13 seconds, Sole4Souls gives away a pair of shoes. When you donate, you'll receive a coupon for a 10 percent discount at Bag Lady.
For more information, visit the store at 1710 Kenilworth Ave., Suite 200; 704-338-9778; thebagladync.com.
Rachel Sutherland: 704-358-5440; rsutherland@charlotteobserver.com
