Inside iVibe Salon in Red Oak owner CeCe Sillemon-Williams made sure it honors her sister Shelbi Stephens.
"We have put her in every part of the salon and I mean because when you see pink, pink is always for her,” Shelbi Stephen’s sister CeCe Sillemon-William said. “From the pink chairs to the pink wall to even the silhouette in the B is hers."
They would have worked side by side in the salon but Stephens’ life was cut short in 2019. A wrong-way driver on the Dallas North Tollway crashed into the car she was in with several friends. Stephens did not survive.
Also gone, is the dream her father says she had since she was a little girl of becoming a stylist.
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"I remember getting her a Barbie doll head that she first started creating with," her father Wayne Stephens said.
Despite her death, her dream became a reality Friday. The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation granted her an honorary license.
"Even though she was taken from me early, or taken from us early, God had a purpose and that purpose was for her to complete life and that's what she did," Wayne Stephens said.
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"It was important to us and the family because she had sacrificed and worked very hard to get through cosmetology school and supporting her son," Sillemon-Williams said.
This moment means Stephens can still inspire her little brother and others with her accomplishment.
"She still kept pushing forward even through tough times she still continued to push for to achieve her main goal," her brother Carrington Stephens said.
Family and friends released balloons in Stephens’ favorite color to honor her achievement.
"Today brings a lot of joy," Wayne Stephens said.
And to let go of a bit of sadness.
"It brings closure," Sillemon-Williams said.
