Despite enduring extreme adversity and poverty early on in her life, Cecilia Ballard’s faith in God has kept her pushing through every new battle that she encounters.
Growing up near the north side of Chicago, Ballard and her family lived in poverty and decided to move to Valparaiso in the 1970s for more opportunities. She opened up her hair salon, ‘God’s Gifts 4 Beauty’, which specializes in traditional African-American hair styling.
“There were no haircare places for African American people when we first got here,” said Ballard. “So I started doing hair all the time with little African girls around the neighborhood.”
The name of her salon comes from her strong faith and her spiritual commitment to God.
“I call it God's Gifts because everything that I do here is because I want to give back to God and to have everybody recognize that this is a gift from God. We can't pass that up,” said Ballard.
Initially, Ballard studied psychology and drama at Valparaiso University but was unable to finish due to financial restrictions. At age 46, she went back to school at Don Roberts Beauty School of Hair Design to pursue a degree to begin her business.
“I had to sign a waiver that actually said that they didn’t teach African American hairstyles,” said Ballard. “So I understood that I signed the waiver, but I went to school and I ended up teaching everyone else how to do African-American hair. It was definitely a win-win scenario; we all had fun doing braids and weaves.”
Ballard’s childhood years taught her about the importance of having faith in God. She mentioned how moving to Valparaiso was like ‘moving to paradise’.
“It really meant paradise to me, coming from the projects of Chicago to staying a year on the south side until our home became ready here in Valpo,” said Ballard.
In her spare time, Ballard loves attending prayer groups and works with home health care.
“I love health and wellness, trying to inspire people to do the right things towards their health,” said Ballard.
Another way Ballard’s faith in God has become a prominent aspect in her life is how it gave her the strength throughout the pandemic to sustain her business.
“It really impacted me personally. If I wasn't a person that actually follows God's call, I don't know what I would have done at that point,” said Ballard.
“Once my mother passed during COVID, I started working with a friend at a health care clinic and helped with her clients. Once they shut down my salon during the pandemic, I was glad I took the call.”
Ballard loves uplifting people when they’re feeling down and reminding them that God has given us life.
“The adversary wants us to give up, he wants us to quit fighting, just roll over,” said Ballard. “We have to be fighters and warriors. We have to put on the armor of God.”