How Working In The Beauty Industry Can Be Empowering. 5 Amazing Stories
Many times, stylists, estheticians, and makeup artists are undervalued. Not many people realize that the services they provide can go so much more than skin deep. In the beauty industry, you can change lives for the better. The following are five inspiring stories of beauty professionals who are making a difference in their communities.
Jess Warburton
At 28, Jess Warburton received devastating news from her doctor: she was diagnosed with stage 3 ovarian cancer. Instead of falling apart, Jess decided to make the best of whatever time she’d have left in this world. As cancer ravaged her body, she decided to live by her own set of beauty standards and shaved off her hair. Today, she donates her time to styling women who have received similar cancer diagnoses and who wish to feel beautiful while still going through treatments. Her signature dye hair coloring utilizes color to represent different forms of cancer.
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Renata Helfman
During her 15 years as a celeb makeup artist, Renata Helfman became passionate about safe and natural beauty products. Her love for eco-beauty prompted her to launch her own boutique called Vert, featuring chemical-free makeup and skin products. While volunteering at Cedars Sinai Hospital, she came up with the idea for her non-profit organization Lipstick Angels. Lipstick Angels provides complimentary beauty services to cancer patients who are hospitalized or are undergoing chemotherapy treatments. All of the products used on patients are all natural to limit patient exposure to potentially dangerous ingredients.
Nikole Morrow-Pettus
You’ll never meet a more humble woman than makeup artist to the stars, Nikole Morrow-Pettus. Nikole has a list of high-profile clients including Liam Hemsworth, Zoe Saldana, and Viola Davis, but her fame has never gotten to her head. She has made it her mission to help the underprivileged by volunteering through New Hope Enterprises. She assists with job training to help those who are less fortunate, break into the beauty industry. She also attends presents at job fairs to present a viable option to those who may not wish to attend a four-year college program.
Regina Villemure
Regina Villemure is a former cosmetologist instructor who founded the charity Children With Hair Loss after her niece was diagnosed with leukemia. Her niece is now a 30-year survivor of cancer but that hasn’t stopped Regina from continuing her crusade to help children cope with hair loss caused by debilitating diseases. Her foundation collects human hair in order to create customized wigs and distributes the hair replacements to hundreds of kids annually.
Nina Husen and Nicole Hitchock
Nina and Nicole were long-time coworkers who decided to launch the charity Hairdressers with Heartafter watching their fellow salon “sister” die from cancer. Their website links hairdressers who are willing to donate their services to cancer patients. Each enrolled patient receives shaving of any remaining hair if they choose and a year of free haircuts as hair grows back in.
