The reason why Shades of Elegance boss Treacha Reid-McCalla supports the Yadel Home for Girls

Your hair is your beauty and once your hair is done you feel good. When I met them for the first time, their hair was a mess, it was horrible.

So I sat down and ask myself ‘what difference can I make’. So obviously my purpose is to take care of their well-being, helping them to accept who they are for what they are.

What I like too is the fact that I can teach them, show them right from wrong and I can instill a little discipline in them because they lack discipline. I think that CPFSA (Child Protection and Family Services Agency) should place more emphasis on ensuring that the ladies are well groomed, well-mannered and they are more disciplined. It doesn’t make sense taking the children from their homes and they are not doing a better job. That doesn’t make any sense. So I think that a lot of emphasis should be placed on self-care, disciplined, principles, values, morals, because that is lacking. I see firsthand, because I interact with them often.

There have been a lot changes in some of them, not all. I had conversation with one of the house mothers about two weeks ago, just to find out the impact of what we have been doing is having on the girls. And she said ‘yes it plays a major role’ because some of them want to be like me, some of them want to be the kind of hairdresser that I am, some of them wants to be a business owner.

I have to now know what I am doing, watch my steps every day, watch what I say and do because these girls are watching because they want to be like me someday.

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One of my goals is to be a meaningful specific to society. And once I am a meaningful specific people will benefit and people will be encouraged by what I have to offer to society. A lot of times we want to be a wondering generality but being a wondering generality that’s no good. What are we doing? Nothing at all, just enjoying ourselves and doing things that are not beneficial to others. I am selfless. So for me once I’m doing something and it is beneficial to people then I am OK, I am fine, I am happy.

It’s not a burden for me. But certainly I would love for more businesses or individuals to come on board. Remember it comes at a cost for me to use the relaxer to relax 25 hairs and 30 hairs and 40 hairs that’s a cost. So if persons want to come on board and buy two jugs of relaxer and say ‘this is for the girls’ then that would be great. There are so many ways to help them. Even to send a mentor to have morning devotions and to guide them, hold their hands, call them once per month and tell them they can be anything they want to be.

They lack serious love and a sense of belonging, so I want to give them that and that’s what I try to do and tell them every time they come in my presence that they are special, they a loved and they can be anything that they want to be but they just need to be persistent and try.

Treacha Reid-McCalla is the founder, managing director and chief hairdresser at Shades of Elegance Salon and Spa. She was speaking to Old Harbour News editor Andrew Hancel on December 19, 2019.