Feeling 100 feet tall: SJAFB airman brings Walking Tall, Haircuts for the Homeless group to Goldsboro
By Ethan Smith
Published in News on July 22, 2017 2:57 PM
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Amanda Lyles with Walking Tall, Free Haircuts for the Homeless, an organization out of Aiken, S.C., uses clippers to trim Willie Sykes' beard after shaving his head during an event organized by Caleb Blankenship Saturday at the Community Soup Kitchen of Goldsboro. Giveaways of toiletries were donated by Blankenship's family and his fellow members of the 4th Fighter Wing Security Forces Squadron at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base.
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Christina Cain with Walking Tall, Free Haircuts for the Homeless trims Eric Wolf's hair during an event organized by Caleb Blankenship Saturday at the Community Soup Kitchen of Goldsboro. Giveaways of toiletries were donated by Blankenship's family and members of the security forces squadron at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base that he works with.
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Christina Cain uses the clippers to cut Neil Bostic's hair during the free haircut event at the Community Soup Kitchen Saturday while he and others wait to eat lunch.
A haircut isn't something most people think about very much.
People usually know what they like, they go to their regular barber or stylist and they pay good money for a great new 'do.
But for the homeless and the needy, getting a haircut can be impossible with how expensive they are and how little the person might have to work with.
So, an airman stationed at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base decided to lend a helping hand and ease the burden.
"Hopefully helping them out with getting haircuts and getting their basic needs items, hopefully it helps them get back on their feet, go out, get jobs, help them basically do whatever they need to get wherever they want to be in life," said Senior Airman Caleb Blankenship, who is assigned to the 4th Security Forces Squadron on base.
The event Saturday began at 9 a.m. in front of the Community Soup Kitchen.
In addition to haircuts, Blankenship had approximately 60 drawstring bags on hand filled with personal hygiene items for both men and women to give away.
As the clippers were laid out and the stylists -- Christina Cain and Amanda Lyles -- manned their stations, people slowly began taking a seat for a fresh haircut.
At first, people walking by didn't seem to know what was going on.
Then, 80-year-old Willie Sykes pedaled up on his bicycle and asked if they were giving people haircuts.
They were, they said, and haircuts were free.
He took of his ballcap and revealed a small shock of gray hair, to which the stylists laughed and said they could work with.
Sykes told them to take it all the way off and give him a bald shave.
"I want it just like his, right there," Sykes said, pointing to a bald man in front of the soup kitchen.
As the stylists shaved his head and cleaned up his facial hair, Sykes laughed and joked with them about various things.
He hopped up out of the chair at the end, smiling from ear to ear and saying he looked like a new man.
Lance Edwards, 26, said his last haircut was in April.
The stylists chatted with him about his family and how he toughs it out through the summer heat.
When he got to look at the finished product, he did a double take -- an unkempt beard and a clump of hair had given way to a clean-shaven head and a neatly-trimmed mustache.
"I'm glad we were able to bless you today," Lyles said, cleaning off the excess hair with a brush.
"I don't even recognize myself," Edwards replied.
"Thank you."
Blankenship said his wife had discovered Cain and Lyles through the organization they are with -- Walking Tall: Haircuts for the Homeless.
"They came because my wife knew of their organization because they're from her hometown in South Carolina, so she reached out to them over Facebook and asked them if they would be willing to come up here," Blankenship said.
Blankenship said as the idea began to take shape, he went to his superiors and asked for their guidance on how to put on an event like this.
He said after word spread, people from all over base donated supplies to help the cause.
Once the soup kitchen agreed to host the event, it was game on.
In addition to giving free haircuts and supplies to people, Blankenship said they had received lots of clothes donations, which they gave to the soup kitchen so they could distribute them to those who were without.
"It feels good, it feels really good," Blankenship said of seeing how successful the event turned out to be.
In all, Blankenship was able to give away 50 bags of supplies containing more than 600 items and give 43 haircuts for free to those in need.
And he doesn't plan to stop there.
Blankenship said he hopes to be able to do another event when winter draws closer.
"We're going to try and work something for the winter, because this is more for summer basic needs," Blankenship said. "We're going to try and do one for the colder months for them, and give them coats and things they'll need and different things to help keep them warm."