February 16 , 2017 The SEGway News Page 3
February 16 , 2017 The SEGway News Page 3
Personality Gary Felton : Keeping Uplanders ‘ trim ’
Gary Felton might be a familiar name to you . He was born and raised in Upland and has been sprucing folks up with a nice trim since 1962 .
When you enter Gary ’ s barber shop , perhaps the first thing you ’ ll notice is his elaborately decorated barber ’ s chair , and massive mirrors with beautiful wood trim . These pieces , and many others as well , were first used in Gary ’ s grandfather ’ s shop . “ Grandpa started out with old hand clippers , people used to tell him he looked like Popeye because his forearms would get so muscular ”.
Gary was able to work with his grandfather in his shop for three years after attending International Barber School . “ I came back and worked there from ‘ 63 until Uncle Sam decided he needed me and I was drafted in ‘ 66 .” When Gary got back , he purchased the old equipment from his grandfather and started his own shop just down the road .
As an Upland-born local , Gary ’ s shop is a center for preserving history . Clients continue to faithfully visit him over the years , and it ’ s not uncommon to find a gathering of friends chatting and laughing . “ One day ”, he shared , “ a woman called asking if we had a TV to keep our clients entertained . When I told her we didn ’ t , she asked why . I told her that we don ’ t watch TV here because we mostly just sit around and lie to each other .”
This picture is a happy reflection of the town history he can recall . “ I spent a lot of time at the Blacksmith ’ s shop — that ’ s where everyone met . Men would sit and wait and talk while they were in getting different pieces of equipment fixed . You could sit and watch them work for hours . If we weren ’ t loafing around there , it was at the grain elevator — best time of year was in soybean season when we would run by , grab a handful , and shoot them off with our pea-shooters .” This same mischief has continued , and you ’ d laugh to hear the reminiscing of past pranks , some constructed and some received by Gary .
As a barber , he has mastered what most people never will — how to use a straight razor . People don ’ t realize how difficult this is . “ You have to be very careful when you use them , that ’ s the main reason barbers used to do more shaves .” He remembered a student from Taylor coming in one time asking him if he could order him a straight razor to buy . “ How about this ,” Gary offered , “ I ’ ll loan you one , and once you get tired of playing with it , you bring it back .” Sure enough , the student brought it back shortly after admitting the impossibility . “ I saved him $ 150 right there .”
“ I was thinking the other day , how it ’ s been 55 years .” Gary recalled that during his training , the statistic was thrown out that of ten people he went through school with , only 2 would remain as a full-time barber just ten years . As a barber , you ’ re always meeting people and making connections , so new opportunities come up all the time . “ Of the five guys I lived with at school , one became a fireman , one went to the railroad , and one other has a shop still , but he mostly fits for headpieces .”
So what has kept Gary as a full-time barber for 55 years ? “ Well , it ’ s convenient , what else would I do ? I ’ ve had a lot of other offers over the years , but nothing that I would love doing . I think it ’ s mostly the visiting that keeps me in it .”
Gary has been a consistent barber to many locals . Because of his talent and the wonderfully reminiscent experience his shop is , outof-town visitors have been known to make a stop to his shop a priority . So if you haven ’ t got the chance yet , be sure to drop in for a visit the next time you ’ re needing a trim !