Barber is a 15-year fixture at JBER’s Arctic Oasis

  • Published
  • By Air Force Staff Sgt. Robert Barnett
  • JBER Public Affairs
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska --  When pilots, commanders or children have busy days and need a quick haircut, many turn to a barber shop in a corner of the Arctic Oasis Community Center on JBER.
One barber there has served the community for more than a decade, and has collected more military coins than some military members.

"I've been here on base for 15 years," said Cindy Lindquist, hair stylist and barber for Paradise Cuts. "I've been barbering throughout that time."

She started out in a warmer climate.

"I'm originally from Texas," she said. "I'm a Texas girl, born and raised in West Texas out in El Paso."

From Texas, life eventually brought her a bit further north to Minnesota, where she found it too cold, she said.

"We moved here from northern Minnesota," she said. "My husband's from Minnesota. We came here because it was much warmer here. We wanted a change from Minnesota; it was just getting too cold. I like being here; summers are great. Summers are awesome; they are hot and humid in Minnesota, so I like it here."

Lindquist is no stranger to the military.

"My husband spent some time in the Army, and then got out and finished school," she said. "My oldest son is in the Air Force Reserve, he had a plan when he got out of high school; we supported him."

Although she has never been in the military herself, she did focus on her career. After nine months of cosmetology school, she got her license and got to work.

After catering to women's hair, Alaska offered her a change and she took it.

"I switched over to men's hair when we moved here," she said. "I like doing men's hair a lot better. It's easier to please. I love doing women's hair, it just takes a lot longer, and they are more indecisive." She laughed, "I can say that because I'm a woman, so I can speak from a woman's view. The guys get a big kick out of that."

The fact the job was located on a military base never slowed her down.

"As long as you have your contractor's license, you can get a job doing hair on a government facility," she said. "They put an ad in the paper; they had to come to the gate and pick me up to interview me. And once I was hired, I get a contractor's license so I can come on base to work."

Like many jobs, she didn't start out in her favorite position.

"I worked for AAFES the first 10 years I was on base," she said. "I was the assistant manager over at the Base Exchange for quite a while. I was over there for five years, and then I moved over to the log cabin, which used to be across the street from headquarters. They tore that down."

Finally, she ended up at Paradise Cuts.

"We're so tucked in here, not everybody knows us here," she said. "If people come in to the Health and Wellness Center, they'll say 'wow, I didn't know there was a barber shop in there.' They don't always think of the Oasis."

The location gave her the opportunity to meet the needs of a lot of different people, from commanders to children.

She liked it so much, she continues to go out of her way to be there when needed, she said.

"I come in extra early," she said. "If the pilots are flying and they've got to get in early, I'm more than happy to be able to accommodate that. I'll stay late. If the general needs to get in late, then I'll do that, too. I'm all about customer service."

Lindquist said she takes pride in serving everyone.

"I do a ton of clientele," she said. "I cut hair for a lot of civil service guys that work in the buildings around here. I do the general's hair, I do a lot of the colonels' hair, I do pilots, I do load masters, I do mechanics; I catch a lot of the guy's who work on this side of the base. This is the closest place for them; they don't have to go all the way to the other side of base."

As the changes of command take place across the installation, the barber has been forced to say goodbye to a lot of friends, but she's also been given the opportunity to meet new ones.

"I met Colonel [Brian] Duffy, he's a real nice guy," she said. "I did Colonel [Robert] Evans' hair; he brought him in and introduced me."

It isn't unusual for her to meet commanders or chiefs at high levels, she said. Many have even awarded her with coins for outstanding service.

As with many collectors of the military coin, each has a story to tell.

"I'm a very avid coin collector," she said. "I got Chief McKinley's coin when he was Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force. He actually gave me my first coin, so I was really excited about that."
"I got one that a gentleman gave me, he was in his 80s and he was up here visiting his son. His son was a retiring and he was there for the ceremony.

"I was born in 1961 and he had a coin. He goes 'well when I go home, I'll mail that to you.' It was from this old squadron that they disbanded, and they disbanded it in 1961. So he wrote me the whole story, and when he got back to Florida he actually remembered and sent me the coin. I was like 'wow that is so cool'.

"Then I had one guy, when he was in the Air Force he was a Thunderbird. And he always goes to the reunions. So when he goes he gets some special coins. He's given me one or two of the special Thunderbird coins when he's gone to the reunions, so those are cool."

One friend even customized a coin stand for her.

"I have a stand but I've got so many it's really hard to have them on my station with all my other stuff," she said. "I mostly keep them in my drawer. A lot of them have little stories as to how I got them or who gave them to me."

The barber gets to know many of her customers on such a personal level that she attends military ceremonies to be part of the experiences and show support for her friends.

Many of her customers don't come solely for the haircut, she said.

"They come in for conversation and a haircut; it's a whole thing," she said with a smile.
"I get to know their wives and kids; it's hard when they PCS. It's very hard when they leave; you get to where you miss them very much."

Thankfully, keeping in touch isn't hard.

"I have really enjoyed Facebook, because it helps me keep in touch with a lot of the families that I've lost over the years," she said. "I mail out a ton of Christmas cards, because I like to stay in touch with them."

One regular customer, Dauson, is 4 years old.

His father, Tech. Sgt. Dustin Loughman, 176th Force Support Flight, has brought his son to Lindquist since he was old enough to get haircuts.

"I've been cutting Dauson's hair since he was tiny," she said. "You have a real bond with the family, it's an attachment, and it's always hard to see them leave."

The barber likes to keep an eye on the silver lining.

"But it's great to always know that new families come in and be taking their place," she said with a smile.