Work for a cause, not applause 

Written by Michelle Wu

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During my frequent drives into Seattle, the sidewalks are littered with make-shift tents, yet the streets are filled with luxury cars. If America boasts about its world leading economy: how can we allow such a disproportionate distribution of wealth? Seattle Trims, our nonprofit, aims to increase the working population by providing access to basic necessities like haircuts and resume preparation for job recruitment. In society, appearances and professionalism play a major role in how we perceive others. People who lack in either category are put at a significant disadvantage. Our objective is to provide opportunity and confidence to both the homeless and the unemployed population.  

 

Our innovative idea is based around what our community lacks, but primarily the underrepresented communities. Four highschoolers are working together to create Seattle Trims, which is a nonprofit dedicated to providing complimentary haircuts and resume preparation to unemployed individuals in the Seattle area. Our main goal was set to help those within the community most affected by the pandemic in addition to people who weren’t working before then. We feel providing these services will boost the unemployed population’s professionalism and confidence throughout their job search. As we put together our action plan, it included working with local barbershops and employment centers to offer our services, and finding new ways to reach out to our community in a safe way. By just giving a simple haircut and resume preparations, we not only are boosting the confidence of our customer, but we are helping to bring awareness to those who are not informed on this growing issue. Many people forget to address the homeless issue, dismissing it in the thought that these people are not trying to attain a job. In reality, most of the people who are forced onto the streets, are actively in the job search market, but struggle to land a job because of how they present themselves. With many financial struggles, these people are not able to coincide with the high standards expected of them, and as result in the negative feedback loop.