As a barber for 47 years, 43 of those in Altavista, Leslie Scott has cut countless heads of hair.
Now, the owner of Village Barber Shop on Broad Street is putting away his scissors and retiring at the end of the year.
"I'm getting too old to do this," he laughingly said on a recent afternoon in his shop.
The 76-year-old, who lives in Motley, said he would probably do more gardening and fishing in his retirement, but doesn't have any big plans.
Scott did other types of work before becoming a barber. He worked for several different industries and served in the Army.
He studied at Roanoke Barber School and first cut hair in Lynchburg, then moved to Altavista.
Some of his Lynchburg customers followed him to his new place of business, so he has served some of the same people during his entire barbering career.
He's been at the job long enough to cut hair for the third and fourth generations of customers, he said.
He was never asked to do any out-of-the-ordinary haircuts, he said.
His business philosophy has been simple.
"You've got to cut it the way they want it to be, and stay on the job," he said.
During his 47 years of barbering, besides vacations, he missed only two weeks from work, and that was for eye surgery.
When asked what he enjoyed the most about his work, Scott laughed and said, "Shooting the bull with everyone in the shop."
The business will continue under Danny Barbour, who joined Scott on Dec. 1. Barbour, 42, has been cutting hair for eight years. He said he loves the work.
Like Scott, he also enjoys talking with customers. He said they become like family.
Scott is married and has two children and two grandchildren.