75-year-old Joellen Knight of Warner Robins misplaced her eye to shingles, however continues to chop individuals’s hair part-time.
WARNER ROBINS, Ga. — The proprietor of Classic Hair Designs in Warner Robins says she’s been reducing hair for greater than 50 years. She says she is the longest-serving hairdresser within the metropolis.
Traditional Hair Designs is at all times filled with laughter.
“Oh, I adore it. To me, it is like household. They’re my household,” Joellen Knight stated.
75-year-old Knight owns the salon. She says as a young person, she began reducing individuals’s hair for pageants and promenade.
“I used to be one the place you could possibly present me an image and I might do it,” Knight stated.
For years, it was straightforward for her. That was till 4 years in the past.
“Once I misplaced my eye to the shingles, it grew to become a problem for me. I actually wasn’t prepared to offer it up,” Knight stated.
Knight says wasn’t going to let shingles cease her.
“I used to say I might do hair by braille. I used to be teasing, however it’s a problem being my age; however God’s been good to me,” Knight stated.
She now works with a glass eye.
“I had shingles in my eye, however I’ve had the shingles 4 instances; and I’ve had 4 corona transplants and so they did not take. They simply would not take, so we have been in a small automotive accident and so they took me to the hospital and I acquired MRSA in my eye, simply after I had surgical procedure, and they also needed to take it out instantly as a result of it might’ve gone to my mind. I did not have time to consider it. They took my eye out and I got here again to work. I did not skip a beat. I simply got here again to work,” Knight stated.
“She has persevered by all of it. She has actually needed to be down to remain residence and never come to work. She labored with an eyepatch over her eye for years earlier than she was capable of get her implant,” Kristin Medina stated.
Medina additionally cuts hair at Traditional Hair Designs. She appears to be like as much as Knight like a grandmother.
“I do not know anybody as strong-willed as her. She’s a bit of redheaded spitfire and it is going to take quite a bit to maintain her down,” Medina stated.
Pat Joiner says Knight’s been styling her hair since 1975.
“I name her Jo, typically I name her Joellen,” Joiner stated.
Joiner says her persona retains her coming again.
“We simply have enjoyable. We simply chitchat, speak, lower up,” Joiner stated.
And over 58 years, the chitchat become laughter.
“Her tales are hilarious. She’ll get the entire salon in on it,” Medina stated.
“The ladies maintain me going. They provide me a run for my cash,” Knight stated.
Knight turns 76 quickly, however she does not plan to retire anytime quickly. She works part-time, doing eight haircuts a day.
At age 19, she owned her first salon. Knight is writing a guide about her shingles expertise.
