For volunteer hair stylist in Moscow, more than just a haircut

MOSCOW, Idaho – Amid the humming of clippers and gentle chatter, stylist Pennie Reeves concentrated on her work.

“A lot of people coming out of prison, or in a mental health crisis, or in recovery, they can’t afford $20 to go get their haircut,” said Reeves, 42. “A clean haircut and a little bit of product goes a long way with someone’s self-esteem.”

Reeves volunteers at the Latah Recovery Center to give free haircuts to people struggling with addiction or otherwise in need. She is part of the Moscow-based nonprofit’s efforts to help rehabilitate people in the midst of a growing drug crisis in Idaho.

Darrell Kiem, executive director of the Moscow-based nonprofit, said someone’s self-image can be an important factor in their recovery. Receiving a haircut not only shows that somebody cares but can also help people in recovery feel better about how they look, he said.

“Sometimes you have to love on somebody before they realize that they are worthy of loving themselves,” Kiem said.

Drug overdoses have risen sharply nationally and in Idaho in recent years. Accidental overdose deaths in Idaho grew 58 percent from 2018 to 2022, when 381 residents died from an overdose, according to the most recent data.

“More drugs are out there, and the availability is so easy nowadays,” Kiem said. “The drugs have only gotten stronger.”

Addiction can transform appearances – acne, skin lesions, tooth decay and hair loss are all possible. A haircut can be a small step forward, said Shaun Hogan, the director of crisis services at the center.

“It puts a smile on your face, to know they’re recognizing in themselves the ability to move forward and achieve greater things,” Hogan said. “To think that you may have even had a small part in helping that can make the whole thing worthwhile.”

For John Cook, who is in recovery, the haircut from Reeves was refreshing.

“I feel cleaner and not irritated – much more likely to do other things like brush my teeth and exercise regularly,” Cook said.

Reeves started drinking alcohol at age 12. By the time she reached 14, she moved to heavier drugs and was sent to treatment. Reeves finished treatment as a teenager, got pregnant and then had her daughter, Britni Russell.

Although Reeves attended treatment, her addiction did not stop. While Russell was being taken care of by her grandparents, Reeves continued using illicit drugs. When Reeves was 19, she attended a drug program in Latah County and sobered up for the next 13 years.

“The first time I got clean and sober, I was young. I got married and I was raising children, so I had something to focus on,” Reeves said.

But in a familiar pattern, Reeves relapsed. At 32, she started selling drugs, moved out of the state and left her family behind.

Reeves said she eventually decided to move home with plans of getting sober again. But she continued to sell and use drugs.

In perhaps her lowest point, Reeves crashed her daughter’s wedding while on drugs and overdosed later that night. Within the next three days, Reeves was arrested and jailed for drug delivery charges.

In prison, Reeves was inspired to change her life, as well as give back and stay connected to other individuals in recovery.

Her daughter, Britni Russell, had her doubts. It was not until her mother was incarcerated for six months that she decided to answer a phone call from her.

“For the first time in five years, I heard my mom’s voice, my actual mom’s voice, instead of this addicted woman that I had known for most of my life,” Russell said.

Reeves was accepted into an intensive rehabilitation program known as a “rider” program for state inmates. Once Reeves completed the program, the judge placed her on supervision for the next eight years.

Reeves is now coming up on six years sober.

For Reeves, the free haircuts serve as a form of redemption and healing, allowing her to channel her remorse into positive action and restore her sense of purpose.

“The guilt and the shame, you know, fed that drive,” Reeves said. “All those things I lost, I can never get back, but I can get things like it.”

Kiem said that giving back to people not only helps the people who are receiving but the people who are volunteering as well.

“It gives you a goal, something to work towards. They keep you moving forward. Recovery is all about moving forward,” Kiem said. “The opposite of addiction is connection.”

Russell said it is amazing that her mother is now giving back to those with similar battles.

“She called me the day that she did the haircuts, and her heart and mind felt so full,” Russell said. “She felt like she had purpose in life again, like this is what she is supposed to be doing.”