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Email this articleHair stylist gives back
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She volunteers for program that aids cancer patients
By JANICE AUSTIN
For the past 47 years, hair stylist Pat Garcia has been helping women look and feel their best. For the past 16 years, her clients have included those undergoing medical treatments that have caused them to lose their hair.
"I grew up in a family where boys needed an education, but the girls were supposed to get married, have babies and live happily ever after," Garcia said. "I saw going to a trade school in cosmetology as an opportunity for a short-term education that could hold me for a long time. I really wanted to be able to support myself. I thought that was an important goal."
Helping to make people more beautiful became Garcia's life's passion. She works in Aptos as an independent contractor at Salon Aptos.
Since 1991 Garcia has been a volunteer with the Look Good ... Feel Better program for women fighting cancer.
The public service program holds classes offering expert advice from hairstylists, estheticians and makeup artists to help women deal with effects of radiation and chemotherapy treatments. The free classes are divided into segments about nails, make-up, wigs, scarves and head coverings.
"For the two hours of the class, they have a chance to not focus on blood tests and illness," Garcia said. "They can focus on being feminine and being women."
Garcia volunteers for the program in both Monterey and Santa Cruz counties. She has conducted classes at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula, Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital, Natividad Medical Center and in Watsonville and Santa Cruz.
"It's my way of giving back," she said. "We may have a 70-year-old woman in class with a 20-year-old. They end up laughing and having fun."
Garcia finds her participation in the classes rewarding and fulfilling.
"We would love to see more women join us every month to have a fun morning and be treated special," she said. "It's not just about the silliness of makeup. Oncologists now say that their patients who make the effort to put on a little lipstick or a pretty scarf and try to stay upbeat almost always do better, so we support that effort."
Garcia grew up in the San Joaquin Valley. She and her husband, Manuel, moved to Prunedale six years ago. They have two children and five grandchildren.
"I don't ever want to retire," she said. "I've been licensed (for cosmetology) since 1959. I love it. I love the people and the interaction."
Source: The Salinas CalifornianAll rights reserved.