When a young girl from Evanston saw a need, she took action.
Avery Jenkins, 10, launched her own nonprofit, Avery's Helpful Hair Kits, with a little help from her mother.
“When I was 6, my mom asked me if I can give some of my hair products to a mom for a foster child’s hair, and I said yes, and a few years later – I started asking about it again and how can I help more people," Avery explained.
From that came the plan to provide specialized hair care items to foster children with highly textured hair like Avery’s.
“I feel like when people do their hair a certain way – they feel great about themselves – they feel amazing, and I want foster children to have that ability to feel that," Avery stated.
Avery launched an online fundraiser and got to work with her mom, building kits for textured hair. The kits include shampoo, conditioner, styling gel and a brush in a reusable bag.
“We have distributed about 750 kits, and we have another 500 or so that are ready to go, ” said Avery’s mom, Patina Dixon-Jenkins.
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The nonprofit's partner, Give N Kind, picks the kits up. Then, non-profits in the area can request as many kits as they would like.
What started in her family’s laundry room is now a successful organization.
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And there's something they’re excited about this year - a new state law requiring hair care plans for foster kids and access to resources for foster parents.
Avery’s focus is to raise more money to help even more kids feel good about themselves.
“If you can dream it, and work hard for it, anything is possible," she said. "I followed my dream, and it is here. ”
If you would like to donate to Avery’s Helpful Hair Kits or volunteer, visit their website.