Finding the beauty in battling breast cancer

The journey of battling breast cancer is one that’s considered difficult, challenging, and downright ugly. That’s why a few local businesses made it their mission to show one survivor just how beautiful she really is.

Meet Jackie Johnson. “I started with the makeup and I was excited about that. Relaxing and also the hair, the hair was just marvelous.”

She’s been battling breast cancer for a decade now. “January 2009 is when I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I actually had two reoccurrences, one in 2013 and one in 2016. So, now I’m in remission and I’m doing good.”

Earlier this month, Johnson won a Hair Fetish Beauty Bar Facebook contest, where she submitted her journey and story of surviving breast cancer. So Monday, the pampering began. Hair Fetish Beauty Bar partnered with Brian Pearse Photography and other local businesses to give Johnson a full makeover as they have done for other survivors for the last five years.

Things started with Johnson receiving a custom made wig, makeup, a new wardrobe, and ended the day with a photoshoot. Krystal Ben, owner of Hair Fetish Beauty Bar, says she loves giving back in this way. “The first thing people worry about when they have cancer is, “I’m gonna lose my hair.” “I don’t want to look sick.” So I’m like if we get a good wig on there that’s the trick. Everybody wears wigs now-a-days and you’ll never know what a person story is unless you ask them. So, that’s why we asked them to be willing to tell her stories, share their awareness to everyone in the community.”

Ben says though she hasn’t experienced breast cancer in her family, the disease is still leaving an impact on her. “The women who ended up winning last time, Mrs. Vern, she ended up passing away actually this year, a few months ago, but we did the same thing to her and for her family to be able to use the pictures for the obituary and they were able to use it for all kinds of stuff.”

“I just like to tell survivors out there that if anyone out there that care, just like Hair Fetish, enough to take out their time on their day off to make me glamorous and feel good about myself, that’s wonderful.”