Beautiful, wimpycat. Thank you for posting Ollie's story. 
Posted on 01/31/2003 7:18:35 AM PST by wimpycat
(Manning) Jan. 30, 2003 - There are some things you can count on in the town of Manning as sure as the sun rises, like a great cup of joe at George's Coffee House, bells tolling the hour at the First Baptist Church and the sound of voices reflecting on tales of old.
Ninety-seven year-old Ollie Stukes' is a legend in town. He's been cutting hair, "Since nineteen-hundred and twenty-five."
Parents bring their kids to Ollie for their first haircuts, "Because I had cut four generations, five generations in that family, see." He's received a number of awards. Strom Thurmond even autographed a picture for him back in '65, "Old Strom was a politician."
Ollie's known for a mean $10 hair cut and a gift of gab.
There is one thing Mr. Ollie loves more than his shaving brushes and hair gel and that's his wife of 73 years. She unfortunately has Alzheimers now, but Ollie says in the day she could make him do just about anything, "Have you ever seen a relationship where the woman wasn't the boss?"
He's got a secret for a good marriage, "Never go to bed not speaking," and a philosophy for long life, "I enjoy life. I enjoy it. That's all I can tell you."
Stop in and plop down in his chair if you find yourself in Manning. There's no appointment needed for trim or talk and Mr. Ollie says if the Good Lord's willing, he'll cut locks for 20 more years. Just not on Wednesdays or after the lunch bells ring.
The irony is that Ollie's son is retired and he is 72.
Beautiful, wimpycat. Thank you for posting Ollie's story.
Ol' Ivan (looked to be about 90) was nice enough, and the haircut was fine. But after the haircut he strapped this vibrating mechanism to the back of his hand and started massaging my neck.
And then there's that name. I'm still kicking myself for not asking Ivan what the deal was with that.
http://www.experienceworks.org/primetime/Primetime2001/winners/SouthCarolina.html
|
SOUTH CAROLINA |
 |
Service to six generations of one family.
Ollie Stukes started cutting and styling hair 76 years ago, and he's still going strong in the same location where he began his career in 1925. Mr. Stukes prefers using clippers to cut hair, the tool of choice when he first became a barber. He still cuts the hair of his close friend, Fred Chewing, 96 years old, who was one of his first customers. He also has the distinction of cutting the hair of six generations of one family. Even after moving out of state, they returned to Manning with their two-year old daughter, so Mr. Stukes could do her first haircut.
After graduating from barber school in North Carolina, Mr. Stukes returned to his home in Manning, South Carolina to continue a career he had wanted to pursue since the age of 15. "When I first began cutting hair, our shop provided many services," he recalls. "We had hot showers all day on Saturday for country folks who had no hot water. Shoe shines were also available, and you always got 'brushed off' proper."
Considered a 'dean' of his profession, Mr. Stukes has served two terms of service as a member of the South Carolina Barber Board. In 1995, he was named Clarendon County's Businessman of the Year and was honored by the South Carolina Legislature with a Concurrent Resolution.
Active in the First Baptist Church of Manning, he has served as a deacon for over 40 years. His personal goals are "to be encouraging to those I see each day, keep my good health, support my church, and enjoy my child, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren."
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.