A barber shop in Ypsilanti, Michigan introduced a program that offers a $2 discount to any child that reads a book aloud to their barber.
Ryan Griffin is the barber at the Fuller Cut who brought the discount program to the shop. He relayed that he was inspired by similar programs in Iowa, Texas, and Ohio.
There are a rotating group of 75 to 100 books that the kids may choose from and according to Griffin, “All our books have positive images of African-Americans — whether it’s astronauts, athletes or writers.”
“When little kids that don’t really know how to read or what’s going on see an older kid in the chair with a book and then grab a book too, that’s what’s important,” said Griffin. “Because when a kid thinks it’s cool to read, that’s a gift.”
“Some kids go to class and they’re afraid to read out loud, but this really builds their confidence,” he said.
“If we can get kids to come back to the Fuller Cut as adults in college and they tell us, ‘Because you guys had us read here, it made me want to be a writer or journalist,’ that’s really the end goal.”
Thank you to Ryan Griffin for being a role model and having the interest of future generations in mind.
