Street Shaves provides free haircuts to those in need. Founder Joshua Masih, whose background is in psychiatry and addiction medicine, says he hopes Street Shaves, “can inspire others and just fight that stigma of homelessness and addiction."
Joshua Masih has learned firsthand the power of a haircut, a shave and a heart-to-heart conversation. The California-based charity he founded, Street Shaves, strives to restore dignity to those in need every weekend.
“It can be so easy for us to judge someone when we see them living on the streets and not take a moment to actually seek to understand what they've gone through in their lives,” he tells Inside Edition Digital.
Masih has worked in the field of psychiatry and addiction medicine for over a decade. He says most of his clients are low income or homeless.
Street Shaves was inspired by Masih’s faith. “I was actually reading my Bible and inspired by the way Jesus loves others and serves others and calls us to do the same,” he says. “And Jesus washes His disciples feet and then says, ‘Just as I, your Lord and teacher have washed your feet, you ought to do the same.’ So as I sat there and I was just thinking, ‘What does it look like nowadays to wash the feet of individuals?’”
Masih decided “washing the feet of others” could look like a free haircut.
“I wasn't a barber, but I was cutting hair for about 10 years out of my garage,” he says. “So what started as me and my brother cutting each other's hair, that grew into family members, neighbors, my friends from college. Pretty soon I had a list of 20 people that I was cutting.”
Over the past two-and-a-half years, Street Shaves has grown to a larger team of barbers and hairstylists working pro bono. Others in different professions have dedicated their time to Street Shaves as well.
“We have an amazing team of volunteers who not only cut hair, but volunteers who sweep, who manage the list, videographers, photographers, like I said, and individuals who are just there to just share an encouraging word with the people getting their haircut, uplift them, and then also pray with them,” he says.
Masih says he hopes Street Shaves, “can inspire others and just fight that stigma of homelessness and addiction.
“That's the goal.”
