Public rally to support family of popular Belfast barber who remains in intensive care
Jay Miller, known as 'Jay the Barber', runs a business in north Belfast and went viral on TikTok after giving haircuts to the homeless in 2023.
He previously shared his experience of growing up in the care system.
On Sunday 20 April Jay took unwell, suffering from a seizure which resulted in a fall, hitting his head and being admitted to an Intensive Care Unit where he was put into a medically induced coma.
Those behind the fundraiser said Jay is a man who has never stopped giving nor asked for anything in return, but people are now being asked to 'help out his family in their hour of need.'
'Since Jay took unwell on Sunday and was admitted to ICU, where he currently remains, many people have been asking about the possibility of a fundraiser to help support the family. So with some thought, we have decided to create a Go Fund Me page,' the page states.
'Jay is well known to the community in Belfast and beyond for all of the work he has done – with the homeless, in hospitals, with those in care, children's homes and hospices.
'He is a man who has never stopped giving and has never asked for anything in return.
'Now we ask for the community to give back, to help out his family in their hour of need. With two businesses and a family to support, Jay will have a severely reduced income whilst he is in hospital and in recovery, meanwhile his family will still have personal and business bills to cover.
'We hope that whatever is raised can go some way to relieving a bit of that worry from his family.'
After being live for just a few hours the page had already raised £2,000, with hundreds of people rallying to help the man.
On Tuesday, the Jays Barber Club Facebook page announced news of his ill health.
'We are devastated to confirm that Jay was involved in an incident on Sunday morning. Jay had a seizure which resulted in a fall and head injury,' it stated.
'He was rushed to intensive care where he has remained in a medically-induced coma and is currently stable at these early stages.
'We thank you for your outpouring of messages … It is still very early days and this is all of the information we can give right now.'
Many people responded by wishing Jay a speedy recovery, among them DUP leader Gavin Robinson.
Mr Robinson said: "Our thoughts and prayers are with Jay and hope that he makes a speedy recovery.
'Jay has never shied away from the difficulties that he has encountered as a young lad. With a pair of clippers and a heart of gold, he has restored dignity and hope to people who felt forgotten.
'Now we hold on to hope for Jay and pray that he has comfortable days ahead.'
It comes as it was announced the man's business has been nominated for barber shop of the year and training provider of the year for the third year running at the NI Beauty Excellence Awards.
In a post on Facebook, Jay's Barber Club wrote: 'Once he wakes up we know he'll be as proud as ever.
'Thank you all for all of your kind messages, comments, shares, media articles and more over the past couple of days. It has been such a comfort to the family and Jay will absolutely love reading them all.'
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