In 2002, Cole Stevens Salon owner, Diane Stevens met a 10th grade girl who had suffered from with a history of family drug addiction and an absentee father. Diane discovered the negative impact of the girl’s exposure to drugs and prostitution on her self-esteem and image, as well as her academic performance. The task was simple at first - a day of outward beauty at the salon. However, Diane later
found that fixing the outer beauty was the easy part, yet only a mask for the deeper issues within. This revelation transformed into a desire to donate spa services to girls. Cole Stevens Salon became the backdrop for the foundation’s educational and cultural enrichment programs. What started out as a day of pampering for underprivileged girls turned into a unique God-given vision to develop a program to strengthen the beauty from within. In an effort to also empower the women of Sierra Leone with the skills to support themselves and their families, Cole Stevens Salon owner Diane Cole Stevens, along with six other stylists and volunteers, visited the capital, Freetown in 2007, for seven days to train 300 women in cosmetology. Having adopted this ongoing initiative as a top priority of her Cinderella Foundation, Diane Stevens and her team continue to provide training to the women of Sierra Leone.
