On a lovely day in Los Angeles, the sun was shining, local radio station KJLH supplied musical vibes and the kids? The kids were all lining up to become their best selves for their first day back to school.
Local McDonald’s restaurant, located at 6904 La Tijera Boulevard, was the site to be seen due in part to their back-to-school event, Braids and Buzz, which helped many parents and kids in the community by offering free barber cuts and braids to celebrate their triumphant return to hitting the books.
“McDonald’s believes in being a good neighbor and we want to show how we help the community. We know that school is coming up and we want to give parents something less to worry about,” McDonald’s supervisor William Jones says.
“So we partnered with Kulture [Krib] beauty bar and also one of our suppliers, Martin Brower, is donating backpacks for the school supplies. And we’re also lucky to have Dr. Kari Williams with us, who is supplying hair care products and also giving these children tips and their families so they can maintain their hair,” he says. The children also played games such as tic-tac-toe and bingo and won prizes from KJLH.
Dr. Kari Williams, a Los Angeles native and director of education for Cècred hair care line, which is owned by megastar Beyoncè Knowles-Carter, is no stranger to helping out her community.
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“I volunteered with this organization and the Brotherhood Crusade about a year or so ago. After that partnership and whenever they have done things in the community, it’s something I’m interested in doing,” Dr. Williams says.
“So, they actually reached out to me, to see if I would come and make a presence. So, because of my wonderful being from LA and my roots in the community, and also, my passion for giving back to the community, when they invited me I was like, ‘sure, yeah,” she says. Dr. Williams also gave free samples of Cécred to the children to help them maintain their hair during the school year.
“I think the same way we raise our children to take care of their bodies, take care of their teeth, clean yourself every day, we want to instill in them the practice of caring for their hair. Our hair is such an intricate part of how we identify,” she says.
Justice Hall, the co-CEO of Kulture Krib Braid Bar, one of the companies who partnered with the local McDonald’s to create the event, feels that this is helping the community as well as the children.
“I think it’s important because we do quick and affordable styles for the community. That was one of our main things: we want to give so that way people could come out and get affordable styles,” she says.
“My mom was a single mom and without the help of the community, sometimes we wouldn’t have been fortunate enough to be blessed with. So, this was my way of giving back to the community and doing the same thing.”
Parent Korin Kendall feels this is not only helping her child, but also is a great gift to the community. “A lot of parents need this. Times are tight, you know, so this is excellent.”
She feels this will help with her child’s confidence in returning to learning. “He complains coming because he doesn’t want to get his haircut but when he goes, he feels, you know, great.”
Kiara Moreno, co-owner of photo partner Visi Booth, says that it’s amazing to see people come together to support the community.
“This is really dope to see this give back to the community, see the people come out. So, any way we can support is great for us.” She reiterated many parents’ statements by feeling that this does help children with confidence as well.
“Any encouragement that any kid can get, it’s cool. It’s a boost of confidence, they get to come out and play, they get their hair done so they can feel good on the first day of school. So it’s dope,” she adds.
When asked if this will become a yearly occurrence, it is something that Jones is hoping to be able to do this for the community more often. “It’s something we are looking into. So, I’m a supervisor. This is my family business. My mom and I been owning this location for over 20 years, and we definitely understand support of the community.”
He also understands how one good look can make a child feel on top of the world while understanding that students can work together to achieve great heights.
“Well, it’s also personal pride because they’re looking well,” Jones says. “Also, realizing that businesses can still connect, so, hopefully they’ll understand when they go to become students, they can connect with each other that everyone can love in their own community.”
