From seasoned professionals to beauty school students, our volunteer stylists are the emotional core of everything we do. We sat down with three of them to find out what keeps them coming back year after year.
Every haircut given at a Cuts & Kicks Foundation event begins the same way: with a licensed stylist kneeling down to meet a child at eye level and asking the same simple question.
What would you like today?
For most of these children, no one has ever asked them that before — not about a haircut, not about how they want to present themselves to the world. And for our volunteer stylists, that question is the whole point.
We sat down with three of our most dedicated volunteers to find out what brought them to Cuts & Kicks, what keeps them coming back, and what they want other stylists to know about this work.
Rosa M. — Lead Stylist, 4 Years
Tell us about how you found Cuts & Kicks.
A client mentioned it. She’d heard about the back-to-school event and said, “Rosa, this sounds like something you would love.” She was right. I showed up the first year not knowing what to expect, and by noon I was crying in a good way. By the end of the day, I’d signed up to come back the following year.
What’s the hardest part of the day?
Honestly? The end. When the event wraps and the last family leaves and you pack up your station — there’s this ache, because you know there were kids on the waitlist who didn’t make it in. That’s what pushes us to grow, to do more, to serve more. The ache is productive, if that makes sense.
What would you say to a stylist who’s never volunteered before?
Come once. Just come once. You don’t need to commit to anything. Show up for a Saturday. Cut a few kids’ hair. See their faces. If that doesn’t move you, I don’t know what will. And if it does move you — which it will — you’ll be back. That’s what happened to me. That’s what happened to everyone on our stylist team.
How many haircuts have you given through Cuts & Kicks?
I stopped counting around 200. This year I probably added another 30–40. But honestly, the number doesn’t feel like what matters. What matters is that I remember faces. I remember specific kids. I remember a boy named Elijah who said he looked like he went to private school. I’m going to remember that for the rest of my career.
Andre T. — Master Barber, 2 Years
You came to us through a barbershop partnership. What was that like?
My shop owner — Marcus, who also volunteers — heard about the foundation and suggested we get involved. We put together a team of four barbers from the shop and showed up as a crew. That first year, there was this moment around 11 AM where I looked down the row of barber stations and saw eight stylists working simultaneously, all with kids in the chair, and it hit me: we are doing something real here. This isn’t a charity photo op. This is actual work, done with actual skill, for kids who deserve it.
What do you tell clients who ask about your volunteering?
I tell them exactly what we do. And almost every time, they ask how they can help. A lot of my regulars have donated supplies or money to the foundation because I talked about it in the chair. Barbershops are community hubs — we hear everything, and we have influence. I take that seriously.
What’s a moment that’s stayed with you?
A little girl, maybe six. She came in with her older brother. She was nervous and kept looking at her brother like, is this okay? He was nodding at her, reassuring her. I spent extra time on her edges — made sure everything was perfect. When she saw herself in the mirror, she looked at her brother and said, “Do you see me?”
I think about that a lot. Do you see me? That’s the question every child is asking. Our answer is yes.
Danielle R. — Cosmetology Student, 1 Year
You’re still a student — how did you end up volunteering?
My instructor Rosa brought our class. She told us that what we’d learn in one day at this event was worth more than a month of classroom instruction. She was not wrong. I’ve done haircuts in school on mannequins, on classmates, on clients in the supervised salon. Nothing prepared me for the emotional intelligence this event requires.
What do you mean by emotional intelligence?
A client in a salon is an adult who made an appointment and has expectations. A child at this event might be shy, or scared, or overstimulated by the noise and the crowd. You have to read them. You have to adjust your pace, your tone, your body language. You have to make them feel safe before you pick up a comb. That’s a skill nobody teaches you directly — you learn it by doing it.
Has this changed your goals as a stylist?
Absolutely. I want to work with youth programs. I want community work to be part of my career, not just a one-day event. Cuts & Kicks showed me that what I’m learning in school can do something beyond just commerce. It can actually heal someone — even if just for a moment, even if it’s just a haircut.
How to Join Our Stylist Team
Are you a licensed barber or cosmetologist in the Las Vegas valley? We’d love to have you.
Our events run once a year in late July or early August, with a volunteer orientation beforehand. Stylists are asked to commit to a full event day (approximately 6 hours), and we provide:
- All necessary supplies (capes, clips, combs, sanitizer)
- Meals and snacks throughout the day
- A dedicated station setup and breakdown crew
- A whole lot of gratitude
To get involved, visit our Get Involved page and sign up as a volunteer stylist. We’re always looking for new faces — and if you’re a student who wants hands-on community experience, reach out. We coordinate directly with local cosmetology programs.
The chair is waiting. The kids are coming. We’ll see you in August.
Follow us on Instagram and Facebook to see photos from our events and hear more from the people who make this mission possible.