ODESSA, Texas —
Two local businesses were lost in a fire on Sunday in Odessa.
Payne’s Gym, as well as Town & Country Barber Shop, were deemed total losses after the blaze, and the cause of the fire is still not known.
Odessa State Representative Brooks Landgraf practically grew up getting haircuts at the barber shop.
“It’s a really sad moment," Landgraf said.
That left nothing behind but shattered glass and memories.
“I went back and calculated – I've probably gotten my hair cut here more than 500 times over the last four decades, and it’s a special place with special people," Landgraf said. "I learned a lot when I was growing up here – learned a lot about politics just by listening to conversations and it also became a place for me to get good feedback from constituents while I was sitting in a barber’s chair.”
Landgraf fought to reopen barbershops and salons in Texas during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“When you have a local barbershop like the Town & Country Barber Shop that’s been in Odessa since 1958 that’s had a pretty consistent string of owners who are local who actually work at the shop -- there’s no substitute for that kind of business and they rely on us here in the community for their support," Landgraf said.
Landgraf said it’s up to the owners for what’s next.
As a staple in the community for 66 years, he hopes the local business can return.
“Since 1958, Odessa’s been through a lot of ups and downs, and the Town & Country Barber Shop has been here in the good times and the bad times," Landgraf said. "And now that Town & Country is going through a bad time, I know that the Odessa community’s going to be here to support them.”
Days later, candy lied on the floor inside -- a sweet treat for so many over the years.
“So Sig Sigmon – the long-time owner and he’d cut my hair when I was a little boy – and of course it being a barber shop there’s always a lot of cut hair on the floor and Sig would always give me an extra piece of bubble gum after I got my haircut if I swept up the entire shop floor," Landgraf said. "And I thought it was a privilege to get to do that -- I didn’t realize at the time Sig was just getting some free labor out of a young kid but I was always happy to do it. I was just always happy to be here.”
While only pieces remain for now, Town & Country Barber Shop's legacy lives on forever.
“You came here for a haircut or a shoeshine but you always walked away with a whole lot more," Landgraf said.