KNOXVILLE, Tenn — On Sunday, multiple nonprofits and community groups came together to deliver food, haircuts and opportunities to those who are unhoused in Knoxville.
David Akers dealt with alcoholism for years. It got to a point where he was kicked out of his apartment and began living on the street. That's when he found CareCuts.
"They took me in, they let me stay at their house for nine months," Ackers said. "I got sober, got a driver's license, a car, people's trust and I got my family back. They know where I'm at and not wondering where I'm at."
CareCuts is a nonprofit organization operated by volunteer hair professionals, cosmetologists, barbers and salon owners. They provide the less fortunate with haircuts.
CareCuts, along with other local homeless outreach programs, provides food, rain and cold weather supplies. They also help homeless people recover their birth certificates, get a phone and learn about opportunities that will help get them back on their feet.
"We need to supply them with the tools to get back to their life," Yassin Terou, who directed the event, said. "We need to teach them how to fish not just give them the fish."
It's opportunities like these that helped David get off the street, a second chance that he said everyone deserves.
"I had given up on the street," he said. "I didn't care if I made it or not. My health got so bad... I was off my medicine for a year. I stayed away from people and felt hopeless. Then CareCuts restored my dignity... and gave me back my self-worth."