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FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – For 6-year-old Elijah, getting a haircut can be hard.
“They always hurt him, they don’t have the patience with him. Like there was another barbershop remember, they saw him walk in, and neither of them wanted to do it,” said Vanessa Palacio, Elijah’s mom.
“Like no, he moved too much,” said Edward Palacio, Elijah’s mom.
“It sucks you know? The other place we were going, they kept on giving him red marks because of the amount of moving he does,” said Vanessa.
But it was a completely different story at the Always Faded Barbershop in Fresno on Monday afternoon.
“He’ll be crying, he’ll be impatient, but out of all the barbershops we’ve had, this is the first one, where he’s literally falling asleep,” Vanessa said.
They say they were so stunned seeing their son, who has autism, so relaxed and comfortable getting a haircut, they pulled out their phones to take a video.
“We’re so blown away,” said Edward. “By how relaxed he is.”
“We’re flabbergasted,” said Vanessa.
Owner Elias Gonzalez says despite only opening his business two months ago, he knew he wanted to find a way to give back to the community. His fiance suggested doing something for Autism Awareness Month- and the idea was born.
“Certain days out of the week we’ll just offer free haircuts for individuals with autism.”
Gonzalez says he wanted to spread awareness of the obstacles kids on the autism spectrum may face and in practice changed the environment of his barbershop to make the kids coming in feel more at ease.
“It’s the touch sensory stuff- or it’s the music- or it’s you know big crowds. So as soon as it hits three o’clock, I make sure to turn off the music and just keep a quiet mellow environment.”
He says they even spent time training staff on the best ways to make kids with autism feel more secure and to focus on being patient.
And for families like the Palacio’s it is working. The cherry on top is that it is free.
“He’s looking fresh already, he’s got a nice fresh cut, yep, feeling good, looking good,” Edward said.
Always Faded Barbershop is located at 3025 Shaw Avenue in Fresno.
For the month of April, individuals with autism can come in on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. to get a free haircut. You can also call them at 559-724-9667.
