Makeovers for survivors
“Helping women look and feel beautiful” are more than words for Scott Miller and his mother, Christy. They’re a mantra for the co-owners of Elevate Salon and Spa in Buckhead. The pair are not only stylists to clients and television and film stars on The CW Network, HBO and Netflix; they also provide free makeovers and gifts to victims of domestic violence at an annual Christmas Day event.
For the last 12 years with help from Christy, Miller and Lindiwe Famodou, co-founders of the nonprofit Shine, have hosted women and children from the Women’s Resource Center to End Domestic Violence for a day of pampering called All Access to Beauty. At the event, 70 dedicated volunteers offered hairstyling, makeup, manicures, pedicures, clothing and massages. “We want women to focus on the greatness that shines within them so they can transition back into the workforce,” says Miller.
One of his most memorable clients was a woman who had suffered horrific violence at the hands of her partner. Miller stays in contact with her and her young daughter, and both are thriving.
“People in our industry are not just ‘doing hair,’” Miller says. “We are building on people’s natural beauty, inside and out.”
For more information, visit shineforme.org and elevateatoverture.com.
