Meet Lenny White, the mobile barber who works in Northern Ireland. His business provides people suffering from dementia with a traditional barbershop experience to both make them feel better, look better and regain some dignity.
Lenny is offering a barbering service for residential care homes, care centers, hospitals, nursing homes and for anyone, who finds it difficult to get to the barbershop. And it's been a huge success in Northern Ireland already! He is now setting his sights on the rest of the UK.
Dementia is a broad category of brain diseases. It causes a long-term and usually gradual decrease in the ability to remember and to think. That is great enough to affect a person's daily functioning. In 2015 more than 46 million people suffered from dementia. Almost 30% of people suffering from it admitted that they have given up leaving their homes. They do not feel the part of the community anymore. That is why all dementia friendly businesses are so valuable. And that is why Lenny's work is so important.
Source:http://lennythemobilebarber.co.uk
For 2 years Lenny was working in care homes, as a kitchen help. That was 20 years ago and now, after working in various places, including sales and marketing, he decided to become a barber. He loved his new passion and decided to combine it with his work with elderly people.
Knowing how important barbering is for men, Lenny realize it might be a great idea to give men in care homes a true barbershop experience. Especially, that hairdressing services in care homes are often targetted towards women. Lenny knew it might help men suffering from dementia with their everyday life. He knew it will bring them tons of joy.
"I brought my little jukebox and played some old classics for the men and just watching and listening to them singing along brought back the good feeling I remembered from working in the care home back in the day. I love to see the smiles on their faces as they sing along.", he says.
He also turns area a bit during his service, by providing it with barber signs, pictures and general barbershop feeling. Lenny went through a specialist dementia training in order to knew the dissease better and to learn how to treat his clients better.
Source:http://lennythemobilebarber.co.uk
Lenny White's work is another great example of how barbers help their communities by turning into those in need of help. He treats his clients with respect, providing them with professional service, that makes them feel young and healthy again. Through barbering Lenny is bringing joy in their lives, proving that all of us can make difference. And that barbers are particularly good at it!Visit Lenny's page and his Facebook.
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