Best Barber Bootcamp Academy

Youth economic advancement

County of Los Angeles (select only if your project has a countywide benefit)

Expand existing project, program, or initiative (expanding and continuing ongoing, successful work)

When I was 13 years old, my father's life was taken due to gun violence. Three years ago, my baby sister's life was also taken due to gun violence in the city of Detroit. I believe My father and sister had a defeated mentality due to their environment. They became products of their environments and didn't get the opportunity to fulfill their gifts and true potential. If they had access to a structured environment, I believe their stories would have not ended abruptly and in such despair. This sparked something in me that wanted to break the cycle for our youth and to create an environment that they were able to thrive in and gain a skill. Not like traditional schooling, but hands on intense learning and offering the opportunity to gain discipline in a bootcamp style environment that is faith filled with zero tolerance for violence. This skill building program will advance our youth in Los Angeles and make a difference in the lives of those who are seeking structure and safety.

The grant will support the expansion of Best Barber Bootcamp, a faith-based, intensive training program designed to equip youth in Los Angeles with barbering skills, spiritual guidance, and life-changing structure. This initiative targets underserved and at-risk youth by offering an alternative to the streets with a safe, zero-tolerance-for-violence environment where they can learn a trade, gain discipline, and find purpose.
Through a bootcamp-style format, youth receive hands-on barbering instruction, mentorship, and character development rooted in faith and accountability. Our program bridges the gap between economic opportunity and spiritual wellness, helping young people become licensed professionals while breaking generational cycles of poverty, violence, and hopelessness.
Funds will support training supplies, certified instructors, licensing prep, and outreach to recruit high-risk youth. The long-term goal is to establish a permanent facility that offers not only training, but also a sanctuary for healing, growth, and transformation. Best Barber Bootcamp empowers youth with a skill, a support system, and a calling.

If Best Barber Bootcamp is successful, Los Angeles will begin to see a new generation of young people rising from hopelessness to purpose. Youth who may have otherwise fallen into cycles of violence, incarceration, or homelessness will instead be equipped with real-world skills, confidence, and a community of support. By addressing the root causes of disconnection, lack of structure, purpose, and economic opportunity, we're not just teaching barbering, we're helping prevent homelessness before it starts.
This program is unlike anything currently offered. It's faith-based, hands-on, and bootcamp-style, combining discipline, creativity, and fun in a way that speaks directly to today’s youth. There is nothing like this in Los Angeles. It’s not just different, it’s bold, engaging, and transformational. Youth will want to be part of this because it offers more than a skill; it offers identity, structure, and hope in a city that desperately needs it.