Carnegie resident amplifies philanthropic efforts as Mrs. US Galaxy 2024

You may think of a haircut as not such a big a deal.

Carnegie resident Sandahl Taylor begs to differ.

“It can really change somebody’s life,” she said. “You can see somebody be able to get a job. It can provide them with hope. And it can simply tell them that they’re worthy of someone caring for them.”

She has been giving free haircuts for a decade, numbering more than 1,600 in the past five years, as part of a philanthropic platform she calls “Connecting Hearts, Changing Lives.”

“Specifically, those go to veterans, first responders and people who are unhoused,” she explained. “I also give them to people who are in the hospital, maybe necessarily going for cancer treatments or transitioning, as well as in nursing homes.”

As a licensed cosmetologist and cosmetology instructor for South Hills/North Hills Beauty Academy, based in her native Dormont and in West View, Taylor brings an “A” game to grooming.

“It’s my small way that I can use my skill for good,” she said. “Everyone has a skill, and I believe that if we all start using our skills for good, we really can make a difference in this world. And we really can make a difference not only in our generation, but for generations to come.”

Haircuts represent only a fraction of the work she does on behalf of others, and she is able to amplify her efforts through the voice she’s given by competing in pageants.

Taylor’s latest title is Mrs. US Galaxy 2024, the first woman from Pennsylvania to be crowned as such. She’ll compete for Mrs. Galaxy International on Aug. 17 in Orlando, Fla., with the hope of having even more of a reach.

“That’s the most important thing, is getting your message out,” she said. “When you have that crown and sash on, everybody knows who you are. They want to know what you’re doing, and they want to know what you have to say. And it’s very surreal to have the ability to make that impact.”

Other facets of her “Connecting Hearts, Changing Lives” platform include supplying basic hygiene products for those in need and educating people about heart health.

“I’m giving out 370 care packages to the homeless,” she said. “I just turned 37 on July 11, and I asked people for my birthday to help care for the homeless here in Pittsburgh, because we have over 12,000 homeless.”

She plans to deliver the packages to homeless camps during the first week of August, and others to the Veterans Leadership Program, which provides a variety of essential services.

“As an Army veteran’s wife and Navy veteran’s daughter, it’s really important for me to give back to the veterans,” Taylor said. “But it’s also important for me to give back to the homeless, because I know what it’s like to be down on my luck, and need resources and need help.”

Her father, the late Roy Barnes, suffered a permanently debilitating heart attack and stroke.

“I was just 17 years old,” Taylor said.” So when most people were graduating high school,” — as she did in 2005, from Keystone Oaks — “I was trying to figure out how to navigate running a household. And that left him completely paralyzed for the remainder of his life.”

Taylor learned she had her own heart condition, mitral valve prolapse, “which basically means I have a leaky valve. And so my heart rate can go up for really no reason at any time.”

She has experienced no major issues, though:

“I’m happy to say I’m healthy, working hard, being blessed, and I’m just really grateful to have an opportunity to represent not only my state but the U.S.”

She won the Pennsylvania title in the Galaxy International Pageant’s division for married women each year from 2021 to ‘23. Her husband since August 2015 — they’ll celebrate their anniversary in Orlando — is retired Staff Sgt. Kenneth Taylor, and she has two children, Blake and Anastasia.

“I actually got involved in pageantry because someone found me on social media, already out in the community doing good work,” she said. “At the time, I was a little hesitant.”

But she decided to give it a try, and eventually placed at the top of the Mrs. Pennsylvania America Pageant in 2018.

Two years later, she was contacted by Crystal Cavey, the reigning Mrs. Galaxy International, about competing within her organization.

“I felt welcomed for who I was at my core, my height, my weight, my size, my shape, my family. I didn’t feel like I needed to change a single thing about who I was or what I support,” Taylor said, and she particularly was impressed with Galaxy International Pageant founder and CEO Maria Torres. “I saw how she not only treated her staff but her queens like family, and I knew that’s what I wanted.”

Through her participation in pageantry, Taylor’s goal is to serve as a role model.

“That’s what I’m really focusing on: What can I pass down to the next generation?” she said. “And hopefully, that is: Continue to care for the community.”