Homeless Brazilian man reunites with his mother and sister after TEN YEARS after they spotted viral makeover photos and tracked him down - having thought he'd been dead for a decade
A homeless Brazilian man has been reunited with his family after a local barbershop gave him a haircut, trimmed his beard, and posted the results on social media.
João Coelho Guimarães, 45, has been homeless in Goiânia, Brazil for three years, but his family had presumed him dead for a decade.
Recently, he stumbled into a men's clothing store and barbershop, where the owner and employees generously offered to clean him up and dress him in new clothes — and when images of Guimarães's makeover went viral, his shocked family was able to track him down.
Makeover: A homeless Brazilian man has been reunited with his family after a local barbershop gave him a haircut, trimmed his beard, and posted the results on social media
New look: João Coelho Guimarães, 45, has been homeless in Goiânia, Brazil for three years
Recently, he stumbled into a men's clothing store and barbershop, where the owner and employees generously offered to clean him up and dress him in new clothes
Spiffy! When they were done with him, he looked well-groomed and stylish
Guimarães had walked by the men's clothing store and barbershop shop, called Padoo, many times picking up cans. But one day, he stepped inside.
Brazilian country singer Alessandro Lobo, who owns the shop, told UOL that Guimarães didn't ask for much when he walked in.
'He came and we asked if he was hungry and wanted something to eat. But he refused and asked if we had a razor so he could trim his beard,' he said.
'That's when we had an idea and everyone in the store decided to help in a different way, providing a day of beauty for him.'
Before pictures posted on social media show Guimarães looking worse for wear, with long, messy hair and an overgrown beard and mustache.
Shave: Guimarães had walked by the men's clothing store and barbershop shop, called Padoo, many times picking up cans. But one day, he stepped inside and asked for a razor to shave
Team effort: Brazilian country singer Alessandro Lobo, who owns the shop, said everyone decided to help clean him up
'That's when we had an idea and everyone in the store decided to help in a different way, providing a day of beauty for him,' he said
Outfits: Lobo also decided to throw in some new clothes, giving Guimarães three shirts, a pair of pants, a jacket, and a new pair of shoes
Employees of the shop cleaned him up, cutting and styling his hair and also trimming his beard and mustache.
Lobo also decided to throw in some new clothes, giving Guimarães three shirts, a pair of pants, a jacket, and a new pair of shoes.
'It took two hours to complete the transformation. The whole team volunteered and everyone did a little, adding up to a surprising result,' Lobo told BoredPanda.
'He is a very shy person and of few words. But we noticed his look of satisfaction and he thanked us very much,' he added to UOL.
When they were done, Guimarães looked not only well-groomed, but handsome to boot, and Lobo and his team decided to share photos of his transformation on social media.
Found! After Lobo and Padoo shared the images on social media, they were contacted by Guimarães's sister (who provided these older photos of him)
Surprise! His sister said that Guimarães had been presumed dead for a decade
'It is Christmas time and the intention was to show that with little we can change someone's life,' he explained.
What they didn't expect was that Guimarães's images would eventually find his family, who had believed him dead for ten years.
'His mother and his sister are coming,' Lobo said. 'They already considered him dead because they had not heard from Seu João for over 10 years.
'They saw the photo and contacted me and, as he has neither a telephone nor a fixed address, tomorrow we will go through the neighborhood to try to find him,' he added on December 16.
The next day, video cameras captured the moment they found Guimarães and greeted him with a hug.
Long lost: Lobo and his staff helped arrange to find Guimarães on the street and reunite him with his family
There you are! The emotional reunion was captured on camera
Guimarães breaks down as he sees his sister for the first time in over a decade
Ending: Though they were clearly all glad to be reunited, Lobo said that Guimarães isn't moving in with his family
'João is still on the streets. His sister wanted to welcome him and take him home, but he didn’t want to. He said that on the streets, he feels free. That’s why he didn’t want to go home,' he said
Though they were clearly all glad to be reunited, Lobo said that Guimarães isn't moving in with his family.
'João is still on the streets. His sister wanted to welcome him and take him home, but he didn’t want to. He said that on the streets, he feels free. That’s why he didn’t want to go home,' he said.
He ended on a positive note.
'We thank God and all of you for making us instruments of this exciting moment,' Lobo wrote on Instagram. '2020 was a year of many losses for loved ones around the world, and in the midst of all this a [relief] for this family.
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