DETROIT (WXYZ) — Motor City Match is a gift that keeps on giving.
And one Detroit woman celebrated that gift with Mayor Mike Duggan by her side at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on her birthday.
Kanika Free is the 175th recipient of the Motor City Match grant.
Watch our full interview with Free in the video below:
Free is the owner of the Salon Professional School of Cosmetology on the city’s east side — and she says the grant is just the beginning to the legacy she plans on leaving in the city.
“It has just always been a passion of mine to teach,” said Free, 38. “And to pair it with hair and styling hair, it’s like the perfect combination for me."
The Salon Professional School of Cosmetology will offer training in all phases of cosmetology and have flexible hours with affordable tuition.
It is a space, that Free says she hopes will give others opportunities to grow.
“I wanted to teach things that would actually make them some money," Free said.
Free says when she first started teaching, she found a small space in Southfield.
“When the inspector from the state of Michigan came, he actually said it was the smallest space he ever gave a license to,” she said.
But Free says she was grateful for that because it encouraged her to dream bigger.
Today, Free has a space large enough to train close to 50 students per program — and she has the Motor City Match to thank for a $55,000 grant.
“Being able to raise those funds first and have them match us; it was perfect,” she said.
Jasmyne Jones, 32, is one student who benefited from the grant the school received.
“I’ve been doing hair since I was about 9,” Jones said. “Growing up, I learned how to braid living in a household of cosmetologists. So of course, when she told me she was opening her school, I was like 'girl I’m coming to get my license then.'”
Jones says the school has been more for her than just a learning institution. But it has also built her up to be successful.
And Free says that is exactly what she has set out to do.
“I always remind them that as long as you make yourself valuable, you’re knowledgeable, you have the education and you have the skill you practiced, you will always be of value to your client... and they will make a way to come see you."
For more information about The Salon Professional School of Cosmetology click the link.
