Salinas barber shop proves hometown service still exists in the modern age.

Erik Chalhoub here. In my 12-plus years in journalism, I’ve always been fascinated by how varied this job can be on a day-to-day (and sometimes by the hour) basis. At any given moment, we could be interviewing an artist about their latest exhibit, rushing out to save a seagull, covering a press conference on a major arrest and ending the night that extends into the next morning at a city council meeting where the merits of building another Taco Bell are considered (speaking from experience, here).

But what I’ve enjoyed most is learning the towns I’ve worked in and the people that make them move. Even after living here my entire life, there are so many unique people and places that I never would have heard about had I not been with a newspaper.

So it was with great interest that I read Jeff Mendelsohn’s feature story on Park Row Barber Shop in Salinas, which is now on the stands in the latest Monterey County Weekly.

Proprietor Lily Bogaards has been cutting hair for 63 years, the past 25 years at Park Row Barber Shop, Mendelsohn reports. Her daughter Adrianna joined the business in 2008.

The mother-daughter duo have been trimming hair for generations of Salinas residents.

“Many of my customers, I’ve cut their hair since they were kids. In this very same chair,” Lily says.

The shop itself is like a living history of Salinas, Mendelsohn writes in his article. A collection of hats lines the walls at the shop, many from local ag companies both current and defunct. Antique razors and barber chairs speak of a time long past.

In a world where customer-focused service is becoming a lost art, where face-to-face interactions are being replaced with cold, unthinking artificial intelligence, it’s refreshing to read about a small-town business still going strong.

It’s these types of stories that are part of the reason why I work for a local publication: I learn something new every day.

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