When Pelicans forward Nikola Mirotic arrived at the New Orleans Mission for a community appearance Wednesday, a line of people had already formed inside the Central City facility. What caused Mirotic to smile when he saw the group of men, however, wasn’t that they were there to meet the 6-foot-10 forward or get his autograph. No, they’d formed a line in order to receive a free haircut or a shave.
In the spirit of Mirotic shaving his familiar beard last month – just prior to he and the Pelicans launching a nine-game winning streak that extended into Round 1 of the playoffs – guests at the Mission were treated to free grooming, in an event hosted by the 27-year-old.
Mirotic, who became a New Orleans resident in February via a trade from the Chicago Bulls, also served dinner to a couple hundred people.
“It was awesome,” he said of witnessing the scene when he walked into the building. “It was great to see people inspired. You feel like you did something good for them. They all looked happy. There was a huge line, with everyone waiting.”
Mirotic laughed, adding, “I felt like I needed to get in the chair (myself).”
Not to fear Pelicans fans, the native of Montenegro is currently clean-shaven and has vowed to continue to remain that way. When he’s not making sure to remove his facial hair this offseason, he plans to host and appear at additional events such as Wednesday’s, which was sponsored partly by his new partnership with the Gillette shaving company.
“I’m looking forward to doing more things like this,” said Mirotic, who on Thursday visited children at a local New Orleans hospital. “You realize how happy you are in your life and all that you have.
“To see people who need help, I think we all need to help each other. Especially now that I have off time. It’s my pleasure to be here and help others, see them smile. I feel blessed just to have this opportunity to share some good, quality time with them. Hopefully I can come back.”
LeGrande Ferguson, director of development at New Orleans Mission, said Mirotic’s presence Wednesday was immediately exciting to the event’s attendees. Many of the guests are Pelicans fans who congratulated Mirotic on the team’s 2017-18 success and the impact he made during the second half of the season.
“A lot of these guys, you don’t know if they would ever meet a celebrity,” Ferguson said. “To have one of the New Orleans Pelicans come in here, people were in awe. It was a wonderful experience.”
Ferguson noted that even before Wednesday’s event, Mirotic made a tangible impact on one the Mission’s employees.
“Our IT guy had a long beard, but when he found out Niko was coming, he shaved his beard for this event,” Ferguson said. “His wife was out of town, so she’s going to be really excited (when she returns), because she’s been trying to get him to shave it.”
Ferguson was pleased by the awareness that Mirotic’s event would bring to the Mission, which is located on Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard.
“A lot of people aren’t familiar with what goes on here,” Ferguson said. “A lot of people think it’s just a soup kitchen for homeless people. It’s a lot more than that. We rescue people from the streets, human trafficking, and also we have drug addictions, alcohol abuse, people with mental issues. They come here and we give them a chance to get back out there and get right.”