WACO, Texas — Going above and beyond her salon chair in Waco, mom of three Lakendra Dugas recently launched a summer braid camp for youth across Central Texas.

Full of joy and extremely focused on her task at hand, Lakendra's daughter Briah is learning how to braid hair. 

"It's easy and fun, my mama's been teaching me how to do it and I like braiding,” Briah explained. 

Not only does the useful technique make the 8-year-old happy, it brings people together.

“We probably started when she was about 6, 6 or 7,” said Lakendra. "When I was younger I would braid my hair and braid a lot of my friend's hair and family member's hair."

And if one day Briah wants to be a stylist like her mom, it is something she can do.

Lakendra opened Beyond the cHair in Waco about four years ago. 

"So what made me want to become a hairstylist is just my love and passion for hair and also for other people. I love getting to meet new people,” Lakendra said. “So just being able to like style people's hair and do things that they aren't able to do with their hair and show them how to like better take care of their hair. I was excited to do that."

That passion extends outside her shop. Lakendra recently launched Next Generation Summer Braid Camp.

Soon she will team up with several other Central Texas hairstylists to teach 100 youth as young as 5 and as old as 18 to braid hair, free of charge.  

“So, we have the braid camp coming up on July 26. And me and the other stylists and braiders have decided that after we do this one, we'll get a better idea of possibly doing it again in the future,” said Lakendra. “This event has been so much bigger than I expected. I thank God for it, it's been a blessing to people already. So many parents have reached out that their child is so excited."

Even her child Briah says she can't wait for camp. 

“Well in the braid camp my mom helps all of the kids,” Briah said. “It’s really fun for all of them."

The Next Generation Summer Braid Camp will kick off July 26 from 5 to 8 p.m.

Lakendra's last braid camp was a two day camp held in June with a handful of kids. She says the 100 spots for July’s camp filled up in one day.