Daily Inspiration: Meet Antoine Walker

Today we’d like to introduce you to Antoine Walker

Hi Antoine, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I was born during the Crack/Cocaine epidemic in the late 80’s. I was born pre-maturely due the substance being in my system so I spent the first 5 years in foster care. I don’t remember those early years at all and neither was my biological father in the picture. So I was off to a very rough start but God had a plan! Between the ages of 6-7 I experienced 3 different incidents where I was molested. No need for further detail, just informational, because a lot of people have experienced some sort of this situation. But the more deeper thing that happened underneath the surface of those acts were the impartation of unclean spirits. I’ll stop right here to say this is a story of Spirituality and of the supernatural playing out in my life and how I came to know Jesus for myself. As a kid I love to draw, dance, and write stories. In hindsight i was becoming a great storyteller and my imagination had no limits as this was the foundation of my creativity. The ingredients in the house I grew up in shaped the next 26 years of my life. Life was not easy having a mother who was a functioning drug addicted and a father who was absentee. Years later I was toted off to the foster care system to spend the remainder of my adolescence untill I emancipated when I was 18. I gave my life to Jesus when I was 12-13 because I felt like I was thrown away and through the people he sent to me at that time he started to show me how much he loved me. I began to write rap song about my faith when I was 13. But I would be further influenced by my environment but the seed had been planted! The open world was a high performance race car and I didn’t have a license neither did I know how to drive and packed on my back was years and years of childhood trauma! Just imagine your backpacking in Yosemite with a bag full of trauma and not the necessities for the travel. Yeah I know, Prepare to fall flat on your face! And for nearly a decade I did just that! We have to sit and break it down now! •Young kid just turned 18
•absentee father
•drug addicted mother
•molested on 3 different occasions
•Left in the foster care system
•feelings of abandonment and rejection
•bullied
•very smart and hopeful for the future
•wildly creative and talented
•handsome
•and with no supervision 🤣
•and fully emancipated
So with those ingredients just know it was wild! I spent the next years in community college at el comino community college where I met my what I called and no longer my best friend. It was a toxic trauma bond! What I know now that I didn’t know then was hurt people are attracted to hurt people! And even deeper the unclean spirits that entered in during those traumatic events in my life started calling out to other or familiar spirits. Our trauma bond was rooted in something called the Orphan spirit. The original Orphan spirit is Satan. He rebelled against God and tryed to ascend the throne and thought he could be God but in his pride he was casted down with a 3rd of the angels in heaven to earth. The Orphan Spirit deals in Abandonment and rejection. Having a perspective through the lense of the orphan spirit had me operating in specific ways,
People pleasing,
Seeking validation anywhere I could find it, promiscuity, doing any and everything to get attention for the lack there of during childhood. Relationship after Relationship and two children later I start to slow down! I was poor and digging myself a deeper hole but out of that came a diamond! I began to cut my own hair out of necessity because I couldn’t even afford a haircut back then and that was in 08’. A lot of therapy, more mistakes, reading the Bible, and many more life experiences but the one thing I was consistent in was cutting hair! I was homeless between the years of 11-13 and no one knew besides the people that knew my situation but outside looking in you couldn’t tell. Buy this time I was getting better at my cuts and always stayed presentable no matter what! I get that from my mom! I moved into my first apartment in 2013 and has been there ever since! I began cutting all the kids hair in the building. I didn’t know that I was started something big! I didn’t know the magnitude of my creativity! I didn’t know that I would be mentoring young men. I didn’t know that I would be so involed in the community. I didn’t know I would be in films, I didn’t know I would be in photoshoots, I didn’t know I would be on podcast and having my own podcasts. I didn’t know that I was a serial entrepreneur. I didn’t know but I always es hoped!! And now I’m walking on the other side of all of that…… I’m speechless 😶 but just so grateful to Jesus for Dying for my sins and showing me the plans he has for me! That’s a short version.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Being an African American Male lol
No father
Drug addicted Mother
Molested 3 times
Survived foster care system
Sin
Trauma

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a Born and Raised Los Angeles Based Barber! My Barber Shop and school will be called Glory Architects and Glory Architects Academy. It will be based in the heart of downtown Los Angeles! Our Slogan is Giving God the Glory one Cut at a time! Glory Architects is a premier barbershop located in the heart of Downtown Los Angeles. Historically, The Barbershop has been a longstanding pillar in community development, serving as a neutral ground for gang activities and a hub for activism, where men can discuss life situations. Beyond that, we aim to return to our roots as a community pillar. When clients enter, they will feel fully known, heard, seen, and loved.

What would you say have been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
Matthew 6:33 “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6‬:‭33‬ ‭NKJV‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/114/mat.6.33.NKJV

Pricing:

• 40$ men’s cuts & Woman’s cut ( short hair or undercut (nape of neck))
• 30$ kids cuts
• 60$ men’s cut + Beard
• +20-40 designs ( depending on size and details )
• Pull up or +15 travel fee

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DBhfd4HSsnu/?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==

Image Credits
@thecreatorseye3 on instagram
Her name is Monique