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<p>LUZERNE &#8212; For more than 100 years, the Leandri family has been cutting hair in a shop on Main Street.</p><p>On Saturday, that legacy will come to an end when Bernie Leandri locks the door of his shop for the last time.</p><p>&#8220;It&#8217;s not going to be easy,&#8221; Bernie told me Friday. &#8220;I&#8217;ll miss the people &#8212; my customers who stuck with me all these years. They got my son through school.&#8221;</p><p>Leandri, who was born just a few doors down from his shop, followed in the footsteps of his father, Martin, his grandfather, Bernard, and his great-grandmother, who cut hair in Italy before the family came to America.</p><p>When Bernie started cutting hair 64 years ago, the charge was 65 cents. A haircut now costs $10.</p><p>But at 80 years old, Leandri said the long hours of standing and cutting hair have taken their toll. His back and his legs get sore, he said.</p><p>&#8220;I&#8217;m just getting tired,&#8221; he told me.</p><p>He will spend more time with his wife, Shirley, and his grandsons, Sam and Jack. He might travel a little and he will play more golf.</p><p>&#8220;I&#8217;ll probably drive up and down Main Street to see what&#8217;s going on in town,&#8221; Bernie said. &#8220;And I&#8217;ll sit on the bench down the street and watch.&#8221;</p><p>The Leandri Barber Shop has been as much a part of Luzerne and its resurgence as anything. The Leandri family has operated a successful business even when downtown Luzerne was struggling &#8212; when 95 percent of the storefronts were empty.</p><p>Mayor Jim Keller remembers those days, and he credits businesses like Leandri&#8217;s for sticking with the town and helping to shepherd it through those down times to what has become a flourishing business district.</p><p>&#8220;He&#8217;s a legend,&#8221; Keller said of Leandri. &#8220;Bernie is one of the reasons Luzerne is doing so well.&#8221;</p><p>Leandri has been in the current location for 24 years, his family&#8217;s fourth Luzerne site. He remembers when there were 8 to 12 barber shops in Luzerne.</p><p>&#8220;And then The Beatles came,&#8221; Leandri said, talking about the Fab Four and their mop top hair style. &#8220;Everybody stopped getting haircuts and let their hair grow long. Then they went to beauticians to get their hair styled.&#8221;</p><p>I remember that transition &#8212; I was one of those kids who suddenly wanted to have long hair. No more buzz cuts for me. And I learned to play the guitar and started a band. The world was changing and not just in hair styles.</p><p>Gone were the flat tops and the military style haircuts. But also disappearing were many of Luzerne&#8217;s stores, like the Acme and the A&amp;P markets. Some of the bars were closing, as were the retail stores.</p><p>&#8220;In those days, when I was a kid, I would have to walk on the road because the sidewalks were too crowded,&#8221; Leandri recalled.</p><p>It took a while, but Luzerne came back from the lean years. Specialty shops started popping up and the downtown came alive again. And Leandri&#8217;s Barber Shop was there through it all.</p><p>Family photos grace the walls on the barber shop. A sign informs that no new customers are being accepted. And a birdhouse hangs between two barber chairs &#8212; one of those chairs dates back more than 100 years to Leandri&#8217;s grandfather&#8217;s shop.</p><p>Leandri said he wont miss cutting hair, but he will miss the people and the conversations. The daily barber shop talk would vary in topic from Phillies to Yankees to fishing and hunting to women.</p><p>&#8220;Oh yes, I would get a lot of those stories,&#8221; he said.</p><p>Leandri is still busy. Most of his customers are older and have been loyal to him for years, if not decades. J&amp;M Barbers will be moving from Wyoming to Leandri&#8217;s building, and that makes him happy.</p><p>&#8220;I&#8217;m glad this will continue as a barber shop,&#8221; he said.</p><p>No big celebration is planned for Saturday&#8217;s last day of operation &#8212; at least none that Leandri is aware of.</p><p>&#8220;I am feeling kind of sad right now,&#8221; he said.</p><p>There may not be a celebration for the last day of operation for Leandri&#8217;s Barber Shop on Main Street in Luzerne. But we should certainly celebrate the Leandri family, their incredible work ethic and their dedication to their customers and to the town they have called home for well over 100 years.</p><p>Richard Adams dropped by with a certificate from state Rep. Aaron Kaufer, whose office is down the street from the barber shop. It was a nice gesture to show Leandri he is appreciated and will be missed.</p><p>Mayor Keller said the entire town owes a debt of gratitude to Leandri for always being there.</p><p>&#8220;He helped keep this town going,&#8221; Keller said.</p><p>Leandri has one more 7:30 a.m. to noon shift before retirement.</p><p>&#8220;I think tomorrow is going to be real tough,&#8221; he said.</p><p>And not just for you, Bernie.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Bernie Leandri has been cutting hair in Luzerne for 64 years is retiring Saturday. He is leaning on the barber chair that his grandfather used more than 100 years ago. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_TTL082215Leandri2.jpg</photo0><caption0>Bernie Leandri has been cutting hair in Luzerne for 64 years is retiring Saturday. He is leaning on the barber chair that his grandfather used more than 100 years ago. </caption0><photoCredit0>Clark Van Orden | Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_Columnshot-1-17.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Bill O&#8217;Boyle </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_Columnshot-1-17.jpg</photo1><caption1>Bill O&#8217;Boyle </caption1><photoCredit1>Clark Van Orden | Times Leader </photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Bill O&#8217;Boyle</p><p>boboyle@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Bill O&#8217;Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

In Focus: Barber’s retirement cuts hole in heart of Luzerne’s Main Street