For Sasha, a teen girl in the foster care system, the way in which she styled and kept her hair wasn’t on the forefront of her mind. Sasha didn’t have the money for it, and she had been heavily focused on protecting her younger siblings before and during their time in foster care. This is a regular occurrence with older siblings coming from tough places, a concept known as “parentification.”

As the start of Sasha’s school year was coming up, her CASA volunteer Candice knew she needed a boost of confidence. Being a CASA volunteer is about making crucial recommendations to a judge on what should happen in a child’s life, but sometimes it’s the small moments of advocacy and bringing a sense of normalcy to a child in foster care that matter most.

Candice also knew that starting off Sasha’s year of education on the right foot, with that confidence and self-esteem, would help her in the future.

Candice embarked on a challenging search in the final week before school, looking for a hairdresser in town willing to give a little of their time in a very busy moment of the year. Candice found that hairstylist, and Sasha was ecstatic when she told her about the appointment.

On the day of the appointment, Candice was there to drive Sasha to her hairstylist, and stayed with her for 4 hours while she got her hair braided and watched movies. When Sasha looked in the mirror afterwards, she couldn’t stop smiling.