NEW & NOW
2023
The Soul Is a Wanderer
AFFIRMATIONS My hair is magic My skin is beautiful
Good hair is healthy hair
My hair is my crown
I love my brown skin
Cut it Forward launches new programs
Cut it Forward is a nonprofit organization providing culturally specific hair and skin care resources for children of color in foster care, children who have been adopted and their caregivers. The organization was established as a nonprofit in 2018 and has since grown to include multiple programs to address common needs, challenges and best practices for ethnic hair and skin care that also promote healing, cultural pride, bonding and connection. All programs are provided free of charge. The Crowning Curls workshop series, taught by expert facilitators, is a new program launched in partnership with Aetna to eliminate the barriers that children living in group home and shelter environments often face when trying to access resources by bringing the workshops to them. This series has been well received by local agencies and organizations, including Anna’s House Foundation. While taking the workshops to a group is effective, the organization has also created opportunities for individualized support. Through the Crown Coaching program,
launched in partnership with Express Employment Professionals and Rooted Barber + Shop, Cut it Forward provides appointment-based, one-on-one ethnic hair care education for foster families in a salon environment. Because each child and family have unique needs, and because childcare can be hard to come by, bringing the program to individual families will allow the nonprofit to serve even more families by the end of 2023. “Our goal is to serve 50 families,” said Angela Hein with Cut it Forward. Crown Coaching includes personalized, expert hair and skin care education, a curated product kit, professional referrals and ongoing coaching as needed. In addition to their caregivers, older children learn to care for their own hair, too. “As kids get more independent as far as self- care goes, they learn to take care of their needs and feel good about it,” said Hein. Learn more about the needs of Cut it Forward and how your family can support the organization at cutitforward.org.
Molly Kaderka, Ferrous Form/Unform, 2023
Gallery tours every Saturday at 1 p.m.
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METROFAMILYMAGAZINE.COM / SEPT-OCT 2023 11
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