Edwennia Moore opened Trinity’s Day Spa almost five years ago because, as a stay-at-home mother, she wanted a place where little girls could come and have their own pampered spa days where they feel special. For the last three years, she has organized an annual Back 2 School Braid Bash so every girl has the chance for that special treatment. 

This year’s Braid Bash happened Tuesday in the Martin Luther King Jr. Multipurpose Center. Area stylists who run their own businesses gave up a day of income to offer free braiding and manicures for children entering grades K-12 to start off the school year. 

“I feel like it’s important for kids to go back to school feeling good about themselves. I feel like when they look good, they perform better in the classroom,” Moore said. “It’s also important for me to give back to our community, especially kids on the east side of town, especially with how expensive things are right now. 

Moore asked parents to pre-register for the event, and this year she had 54 girls sign up. She provided breakfast, lunch, school supplies and giveaways, including activity bags to keep children entertained while they waited. This year, five stylists, each with their own styling business, volunteered their time. Moore also had a manicure station with staff from Trinity’s Day Spa. 

Christine Roberts, a mother of three girls, said she was amazed by the quality of the services provided for free. Trinity’s Day Spa provided all the hair supplies and products, but Moore did not stop at the minimum necessary for a feed-in braid. Her specialty being “glitzy glamor,” she included hair glitter. 

The hairstyles provided freely at Tuesday’s Braid Bash would normally cost anywhere from $50 to $125, according to Moore. 

“This is a blessing to my family,” Christine Roberts, a mother of three girls, said. “I don’t have transportation, so them taking the time out of their days to bless my kids, it means a lot to me.” 

Roberts said she can picture her daughters at the mirror as they get ready for school, confident in knowing they look good. 

Loni McNish works as a teacher but also runs a styling business, Natural Style, out of her home. She said she likes donating her time for the event because she did not have something like this when she was growing up. McNish said it would have made her happier and more confident if she had had the resources for professionally styled hair as a child. 

“Not every style our parents did was cute,” McNish said. “So to have somebody, a professional, doing it, it gives a child a sense of confidence. It boosts their spirits up.”