SARASOTA, Fla. — With just 10 days to Christmas, many are still putting the final touches on their gifts for loved ones. But all year round, one local business makes a difference and gives what they call "a gift of beauty" to under-served women in Sarasota.
"When they walk in here I want them to feel like they belong, and quite quickly they actually do which is quite really awesome," salon owner Delores "Dede" Caldwell.
Caldwell, who has lived in Sarasota for over two decades, owns a small salon on Central Avenue in Sarasota named Beauty Bridge.
With a non-profit foundation linked to the business, Caldwell said she wanted to build a bridge between "the haves and have-nots" one haircut and color job at a time. Many of the women she helps are in shelters or rebuilding their lives away from the grip of addiction or domestic violence.
"Getting your hair done is really hard to accomplish. Many are from very limited means and sometimes there has been abuse, addiction, and homelessness, but because of the internet they know the latest styles, they know the latest tools, they know the latest colors, and they push my creativity," Caldwell said.
Caldwell opens up her salon for charity work three days out of the week for at-risk women who get connected to her through area resources, shelters and social workers. She said being able to get their hair done can make a huge impact on their journey towards rebuilding.
"We're talking about court or talking about jobs or talking about meetings that they have to go to for recovery, so they are in the public and they are presenting themselves to other people just like we do," she explained.
Caldwell and her daughter, Saasha Plefka, came up with the idea in 2021, during the pandemic, when grooming care was challenging due to social distancing. Plefka also has a salon of the same name where she offers other makeover services for free to at-risk women in her Connecticut community.
"It seems like the superficial side of it; it's not. It opens windows of self-esteem and it creates the possibility that if it happened today it breaks that ceiling," Caldwell said.
Both salons are supported by the same foundation and donations from local groups and faith-based organizations, like churches, in Sarasota.
According to the organizers, the process of gifting a hairdo is not only for clients who make appointments. Anyone in the community can donate at least $50 to have the salon's seats filled with women in need.
"That covers our overhead, our phone and hair products and I try to send everybody out with shampoo and conditioner and stuff like that," she said.
Caldwell also says licensed stylists are welcome to volunteer to help with the makeovers.
"The gratitude from giving, it's raw, I mean it's the best," she said.
You can learn more about "Giving A Gift of Beauty" by connecting with the Beauty Bridge Foundation.