LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) -- — Barbers came out to Lexington’s Lyric Theater to show off their skills and teach Lexington’s community about all that the profession has to offer. Project Ricochet hosted the event, part of its Barbershop Initiative.
Isa Ajeti, with the Business of Barbering Institute, says, "We are here to kind of elevate and show the whole side of what it takes to be a barber. Instead of just cutting hair you've got the business side, the marketing side. So that involves a lot of that. So, we've actually came out here and have a whole full base curriculum that teaches everything for you to be able to achieve that level."
There was even more to learn about health. Project Ricochet partnered with Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Medicaid in Kentucky and the Kentucky Department for Public Health to work together to get Black men and kids to play an active role in their health. The organization hosted a public health fair in addition to its barbershop showcase.
Project Ricochet’s Dwight Sthillaire, says, "We saw the need for barbers in the community, we saw that barbers are therapists, they are pharmaceutical advisors, so we saw the need to empower those barbers, educate those barbers. So then, when people like us in the community go to them, they can be guided towards the right direction."
The project has partnered with six barbershops. More than 20 vendors attended the health fair. Project Ricochet's leaders say they've been able to host several successful events and impact around 700 Kentuckians.
Sthillaire says, "I mean the end goal is to put the public in the front seat. We want to tackle all the social determinants of health that are faced around here in Lexington. Each barber shop is a community in themselves, so we treat it as such."
The barbers and leaders said that their shops are safe spaces, communities for people to open up in, and they want people to feel empowered to discuss health more.
Master Barber, Anthony Burdette says, "We're going a lot of times without getting our health checked until it's too late. So, this is just another reminder for guys to and women -- in our community to regularly check their health. Maintain a physical, maintain your blood pressure checks. Things like that just to better their health in our community. And we're pleased to have anthem and other programs join in with us for this."
