Beauty and wellness experts are without a doubt professionals with a lot on their plates. These creatives run businesses, educate on stage, network at conferences, and stand on their feet for hours to best serve clients. Yet, many still find the time to perform community service work.
Leroy Garrett is best known as Royleethebarber. And he is without a doubt a busy service provider, who still finds the time to give back to his community through the local Big Brothers Big Sisters program based near his new home and recently opened shop in Houston, Texas.
As a former reality television star, who has appeared on 12 different series of the hit MTV show: The Challenges, it’s safe to say that Leroy has a lot on his plate. He also regularly hosts a relationship podcast with his long-term girlfriend called Kam & Lee. And with regards to his work in the shop, Leroy runs his own one-man show that’s aptly named Leroy aka Royleethebarber.
Of all the different responsibilities that Leroy juggles—volunteering to motivate youths is something that resonates deeply. And that’s because many years before Leroy was handling MTV challenges like a professional athlete for a nation-wide audience, he was dealing with the struggle of being a foster child in Detroit, Michigan where he was born and raised.
Read more about this gentle giant with the soul of a saint and the creativity of a fine artist. Learn about his struggles and his ability to overcome a host of adversities, which he channels into his community service work to help future generations become stronger young men and women.
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Today, Leroy literally and figuratively stands tall inside his shop, where he crafts fresh cuts and sculpts stylish beards. As a Booksy Ambassador with a host of clients who think of his space as a second home, it’s easy to say that Leroy has become the very best version of himself.
Unfortunately, this wasn’t always the case. Leroy spent most of his youth in the foster care system within a rough area of Detroit, as a self-described “underprivileged kid.”
A family eventually adopted Leroy before he started high school. But his experience keeps him connected with troubled youths. One thing in particular that he remembers from his childhood is feeling left out when it came to looking and feeling his best. And that's because nice haircuts just weren’t available to him.
“I've been in and out of foster homes since I was five years old. I finally got adopted by a family when I was 10. And for me, I wasn't getting nice haircuts like that. When you go in and out of these different places, you get a haircut whenever you can. And they might just shave your head. But I never really had clean haircuts. So, I know as an adult how that helps with some of these kids. Because I know how good you feel, after your first real haircut in a while,” he said.
That feeling which Leroy firmly remembers motivates him to give back as both a humanitarian but also as a barber. He wants to share his gift for creating graphics that resemble street art to the people he feels need it most. So, upon relocating to Houston a few months ago, he walked into the Big Brothers Big Sisters program. And he immediately pitched his idea for a community service project.
Leroy hosted his first community service project in the Houston area less than one month ago. It took place inside the WeWork Jones Building at 708 Main Street on Sunday, August 22nd. He hosted the Back to School event in conjunction with the Houston based Big Brothers Big Sister program. Their office is at 1003 Washington Avenue.
He opened the event to neighborhood kids. His goal was to find an opportunity to start giving back to the youths in his new area, after recently relocating to Houston. And he also wanted to use this opportunity to bring more positivity and hope to places where it may not have always existed.
As a bit of a tough self-critic, Leroy admits he was disappointed that the event didn’t attract hundreds of youths like he imagined, even though it took place amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. But dozens of kids were able to get clean cuts and laugh from behind their face masks, while meeting potential role models all carefully screened by the Big Brothers Big Sisters program.
“It was a good experience, because they were so happy. One little boy, I have a video of him, he kept looking directly into the camera, because he was so excited about the design that I put into his head. So, I can definitely say that with a couple of kids—I made an impact,” he said.
In addition to receiving haircuts, Leroy raised over $1,000 for his community service project. He used the money to buy school supplies that children were able to pick out for themselves. Those items included notebooks, book bags, pens, pencils, and paper.
Another positive moment from the event was letting the kids pick out the items themselves, he said. Leroy remembers how rarely he received gifts growing up as a kid. So, it was heartwarming for him to be able to do that for others.
Despite the fact that his selfless, charitable actions help change lives for the better, Leroy modestly describes them as something that “all of us can do.” In particular, he feels that industry professionals are in a great position to connect with those in need, because industry experts have the people skills that translate to making genuine connections through community service.
Working with others may seem time consuming. But it only takes a few days a month to really help people, he said. Mentoring youths only takes a few hours a session. But it goes a long way.
“Some of the kids are dealing with a lot when it comes to their home life and being bullied at school. When I cut their hair or visit them at the Big Brothers Big Sisters center, I let them know that they can be anything they want, because when it comes to children, I feel like they’re like sponges that can soak up good energy,” Leroy said.
Already, Leroy is planning his next community service projects. He wants to focus on helping the homeless. Although he regularly donates water and blankets, he wants to do something bigger. For another project, he wants to help promote exercise and well-being through a 5K walk. But he still plans on working closely with the Big Brothers Big Sisters program, while planning these projects.
Leroy strongly encourages anyone in the industry considering community service work or mentorship to start today. But he said that it’s important to bring positive energy to every meeting. “Whenever people come inside my studio, there’s always going to be good energy and good vibes. There’s kind of a lot of crazy things going on in the world. But it bounces off of me,” he said, adding that kids in particular need that positivity.
He also added that “I’ve been one of these children who come from an underprivileged background. So, I feel like the cards were stacked against me. But I think it’s great to be able to give back. I’ve been blessed to have so many people help me and mentor me. And I want to share that gift with others,” he said.
