Holy Nun: Local Nun Restores Dignity One Haircut at a Time
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) - It starts with a chair — and an act of love.
“It’s the greatest place in Santa Barbara I think for homeless people,” said Richard Grijalba, a client at the Father Virgil Cordano Center. “They help us with our hygiene, our haircuts, we’re fed. It’s a place to be during the day — because there’s no place for us to be during the day.”
“They are the children of God,” said Sister Oanh Tran of St. Vincent’s Santa Barbara. “They don’t have anything, but a haircut gives them confidence for themselves.”
She’s Sister Oanh Tran — born in Vietnam, trained in healthcare and cosmetology — now using both to bring dignity to Santa Barbara’s homeless.
Here, her ministry is presence.
Oanh arranges her tools, ready for anyone in need of a fresh start.
“I just think everybody wants to look nice,” Tran said. “With shampoo and a haircut it makes them feel better — more confidence and happy.”
Each week, she gives nearly 30 haircuts to those living on the streets — helping them look sharp and feel seen at the Father Virgil Cordano Center.
“She blesses my life, that’s for sure,” Grijalba said.
“My hope is to make them feel love and care — that someone loves them and cares for them,” Tran said.
The clippers buzz, smiles spread, and a quiet sense of hope returns.
“I feel refreshed and positive again I think,” Grijalba said.
“They help me to be closer to God day by day,” Tran said. “And I hope they see God in me too.”
“I feel like a million bucks,” Grijalba said.
One haircut.
One human restored.
Proof that grace still cuts through.
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