Jeremy Teal is the director and owner of Paul Mitchell The School in Lexington and Louisville. About 17 years ago, Jeremy was introduced to the salon business and eventually fell in love with the industry. “You genuinely connect with people with passion in this industry,” said Jeremy. “There’s just a contagious energy. It’s what they wanted their entire life. So, I just kind of fell in love with that energy and that passion.”

He also fell in love with the students that attend Paul Mitchell The School. “I kind of affectionately named our school the island of misfit hairdressers, kind of a play off Rudolph and the island of misfit toys,” shared Jeremy. “Most of (the students) are creative. Nobody really understood them because of their creative nature, because of the way they learned. They didn’t connect well with teachers.” As a result, The School uses curriculum that targets the best way each student processes new information.

Jeremy truly cares for all of his students. So, it seemed natural that with this kind of compassion for young people, Sunrise would eventually find him. “I walked into the school one day, and somebody left a folder and about 10 business cards on my desk,” Jeremy said. “So, I opened it up. It was all the information about Sunrise.”

Although Jeremy didn’t know much about our ministry at the time, eventually Sunrise would become part of the school’s annual fundraising, thanks to the name on the business cards: Rick Burslem, Sunrise Vice President for Marketing & Advancement. Jeremy had known Rick for several years. “I knew if he was willing to put his name behind something, and jump on board to support it, it had to be worthwhile,” Jeremy shared.

Jeremy quickly discovered a similarity between his students and Sunrise kids. “With some of the stories that Rick told me in the very beginning, it’s very similar,” Jeremy explained. In fact, as he described his own students at Paul Mitchell The School, it became evident that he was also describing many of the children and youth in our Sunrise programs: “They never really fit in where they were. Now they have this opportunity to be somewhere where they are loved every day, where they’re not judged, and where they can come be whoever it is they want to be. It’s empowering for them.”

In the beginning, Jeremy’s decision to make an investment in Sunrise was mostly about his relationship with Rick. Now, it’s about the potential in our Sunrise boys and girls.  “An investment in Sunrise is a lot like an investment in the future,” Jeremy said. “My hope would be – and I think it would be amazing – that the future governor of the state comes out of Sunrise. I think a kid like that can take (his or her) experience and really understand what needs to be done versus the kid who has never experienced true tragedy or a true hurdle in life. How do you man a state, a city, a county – how do you lead – if you’ve never really experienced that before? So, I think the kids that come out of Sunrise are kids that can make a difference, that can do something bigger and better.”

Jeremy doesn’t hold back in encouraging others to invest in Sunrise as well. “With Sunrise, you get kids that have life experience that want to see things done differently,” stated Jeremy. “That’s what I would tell someone that wanted to pick a charity. You’re investing in that future. You’re not investing in a cure or a cause. You’re actually investing in a kid. To see that kid grow and flourish and become something better – I think there is no greater reward than that.”