CARTHAGE, Mo. — This kind of specialty is usually only found hours away in a major city, but now breast cancer survivors in the area can come to the Carthage Square.
Micah Moore is a CPCP certified PMU and paramedical tattooist, providing 3D hyperrealism areolas, scar camouflage and inkless scar/stretch mark revision – located inside Lillian & James Co., on the northeast corner of the Square. She is thrilled to be able to tell breast cancer survivors that insurances will work through a company called NTBS so that her service can come at no charge to the patient.
“There’s so much that I love about this,” Moore said. “If someone who has had a mastectomy, this tattoo has a 3D illusion so it doesn’t look flat. A lot of my clients get emotional because maybe they’ve looked this way for years and they never thought they would look beautiful again. To return to a sense of normalcy, to see yourself as beautiful – it is very much something you go through mentally, not just physically. The skin damage and scar tattoo services I do are permanent – it fixes the texture of a stretch mark. And sometimes in just one session. That’s a big deal.”
As October is celebrated as Breast Cancer Awareness Month, it seemed like a good opportunity for Moore to tell her story and how she came to be in Carthage, helping local women who inspire her.
“One in three women have breast cancer, and it’s becoming more common for younger women,” Moore said. “I’ve helped girls before they go through chemo, to tattoo eyebrows before they lose them – which is a scary thing. They told me it was the best thing they could have done because it’s preparedness in a situation when you’re scrambling to look natural. These women are some of the strongest you’ll ever meet. Some go to appointments alone – they go through more than you could imagine. Coming in here to see me is a help because it’s calming experience.”
Moore, a Lamar native, explored several career paths after high school – art, teaching, welding and even zoology – before she joined the beauty industry in 2016. It made perfect sense – she is a third generation beautician and her grandmother was an entrepreneur. Carrying on her legacy, and a competitive heart one obtains with eight brothers, Moore set out to be one of the best in the industry. She graduated top of her class to become a Certified Permanent Cosmetic Professional (CPCP). She opened her own business, Meek Made It in 2020.
“I remember a prayer when I had the lowest point in my life, ‘Make me happy and of service to people,’” Moore said. “After that I just followed His breadcrumbs, kept an open heart to where He led. It took unbridled faith, and He kept opening doors for me. To know that His plans for you are better than what you could have done yourself – I don’t know how, but it worked and I’m so grateful.”
The job’s not done.
Moore is currently earning another certification that will allow her to train and educate out of her business. By early next year, she hopes to be in another location near Lillian & James with a qualified team, helping people feel beautiful.
For more details about Meek Made It, please visit www.meekpmu.com.
