More than $8,000 Raised for Children in Vietnam

Grayton Beach, Fla. (June 15, 2009)––Salon Twist owner, Gina Shiflett, presented the 3rd Annual Change the World fundraiser in Rosemary Beach, which benefited the Global Village Foundation on Sunday, June 14, 2009. Rosemary Beach residents and merchants, Faisal & Jenifer Syed, hosted the dinner event at their home, which raised over $8,000 for the foundation.

Established by Le Ly Hayslip, the Global Village Foundation benefits children in Vietnam by building schools and providing mobile libraries, among other things. Hayslip’s main focus is not only on improving conditions for learning but also on instructing the teachers in how to use books in schools, and to engage and inspire students and teachers alike.

“We try to focus on education because we believe it is the best way to truly impact the lives of underprivileged children,” said Hayslip.

Hayslip’s personal story of surviving the Vietnam War is so compelling that Oliver Stone chose to make a movie about it called Heaven and Earth. Hayslip brought Vietnamese produce that she obtained in California to prepare authentic Vietnamese cuisine for the dinner event.

Shiflett first learned about this organization from Jane Burns, a client of Salon Twist. “When Jane told me about the work this foundation is doing for the children of Vietnam, I knew I had to do something to help them,” said Shiflett.

Founded by Shiflett three years ago to benefit those in need, Change the World Fundraiser events have been met with success. In 2006, the first Change the World Fundraiser raised $19,000 to purchase insecticide-treated mosquito nets for African families. In 2007, Shiflett partnered with Patricia “Sister Schubert” Barnes and her Barnes Family Foundation to benefit Sister’s Ukrainian orphanage, Sasha’s Home. The event, which raised more than $100,000, featured Greg Barnhill from Nashville who performed a “songwriters in the round” at the stunning Caliza Pool at Alys Beach.

For more information on Salon Twist or Change the World Fundraiser, please visit www.SalonTwist.com. To know more about the Global Village Foundation, please visit www.GlobalVillageFoundation.org. To make a donation to the Global Village Foundation, please mail checks (payable to Global Village Foundation) to Jane Burns, 104 Pointe Circle, Santa Rosa Beach, Florida 32459.

About Salon Twist
Salon Twist is owned by Principal Hair Artisan Gina Shiflett, who opened the boutique hair salon in 2001. Shiflett grew up in the industry under her mother who also owned a hair salon and has spent a lifetime honing her craft. She has 17 years of experience at the prestigious Van Michael Salon in Buckhead and was voted Atlanta’s Best Men’s Hairdresser by Atlanta Magazine during her tenure there. Shiflett has received extensive training at Vidal Sassoon in California and London. In 2006, she founded the Change the World Fundraiser as a means of giving back to the community. That campaign has worked to provide mosquito nets to children in Africa to protect them from malaria and to raise funds that benefit the Barnes Family Foundation and Sister Barnes’ Ukrainian orphanage called Sasha’s Home.

For more information on Salon Twist, please call 850.231.7853 or visit www.salontwist.com.