Brightline's New Buzz Boxx Mobile Barbershop Makes Palm Beach County Debut Promoting Rail Safety and Mental Health Awareness
- Supported by West Palm Beach Police Department and Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office -
Images can be found at the link here: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/k4eac27q2nr6gdi/AABeQViF-tpqXyX8kgk_2oEQa?dl=0
MIAMI, Fla. (January 24, 2020) - Yesterday, Brightline unveiled the new Brightline Buzz Boxx in Palm Beach County, the centerpiece of a unique safety initiative driven by the intercity rail system in partnership with 211 Helpline and Operation Lifesaver. The mobile barbershop is designed to engage with communities that interact along the rail corridor and educate them on rail safety and mental health.
In coordination with several Palm Beach County organizations and law enforcement, dozens of residents received free haircuts at Brightline's West Palm Beach Station and Lake Worth Beach. Prior to their haircuts, all signed the Operation Lifesaver Rail Safety Pledge promising to stay safe around railroad tracks. During their “buzz's”, residents were also able to connect with the barber and engage in meaningful conversations. This year, Brightline plans on over 60 Buzz Boxx activations across South Florida.
“Together with law enforcement leaders, Operation Lifesaver and Brightline, we are proud to engage in ongoing efforts to raise awareness for mental health issues and suicide prevention through this unique mobile assett,” said Candi Spitz, spokesperson for 211 Helpline Palm Beach/Treasure Coast. “The Brightline Buzz Boxx is a wonderful tool for outreach across South Florida and to directly engage with our most vulnerable communities.”
Since 2017, rail fatalities in Florida have gone down but suicides by rail have gone up, with 75 percent of incidents with Brightline a result of suicide or drugs. Suicides are up in every demographic and age group and it is the second leading cause of death between ages 15-24.
“Haircuts are a unique way to engage communities and make a personal one-on-one connection with individuals while sitting in the barber's chair,” said Patrick Goddard, president of Brightline. When you look better, you feel better and we know that basic services like this make a big difference in someone getting back on their feet. “We are planning 60 activations across South Florida and the state this year touching all of the communities along the rail corridor.”
The Buzz Boxx is a state-of-the-art mobile barbershop designed to visit the heart of neighborhoods that live along the tracks and promote safety and mental health. Brightline is working with homeless organizations, youth centers and schools educating on rail safety awareness and providing resources for mental illness. Buzz Boxx barbers have been provided mentorship training so that they know how to best address the youth one-on-one, and provide encouragement and follow up needed to help them succeed.
For more information on the Buzz Boxx and partnership inquiries for events and activations, please e-mail buzzboxx@gobrightline.com .
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About Brightline
Brightline is the first privately funded passenger rail system in America in over a century. Brightline is designed to reinvent travel and take cars off the road by connecting city pairs and congested corridors that are too close to fly and too long to drive. Providing fast, efficient, hospitality-driven transportation featuring the latest in customer-friendly amenities, Brightline currently operates in Florida between Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach, with plans to expand to Orlando, Boca Raton, Aventura and PortMiami. The company is also on track to break ground between Las Vegas and Southern California in 2020.
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Michael Hicks
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Briana Ciraulo Anna Feiner
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