By Rod Ohira
Advertiser Staff Writer

Eighty-three-year-old Fumie Enomoto has made the most of her only career opportunity.

"I sure enjoy it," said the owner of Kemoo Barber Shop at 672 Kilani Ave., who has been a hair cutter in Wahiawa for 67 years, including five as an apprentice. "My customers are my doctors; they keep me healthy. Seeing and talking with people makes me feel good."

Until last year, Enomoto's shop was open six days a week, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., 50 weeks a year. "I started to take two-week vacations in 1970," she said. "Before that, I never closed except on Sundays and holidays."

Although she isn't planning on retiring soon, Enomoto has had to cut back her work schedule to 18 hours a week (8-11 a.m., Monday to Saturday) on orders from her doctor.

Fumie Enomoto, owner of Kemoo Barber Shop, has been cutting hair for 67 years in Wahiawa. She credits her customers for making her feel healthy. Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser

"My father wanted me to become a barber, like my older sister (the late Sakayo Yasui)," she said. "In those days, it was not what you wanted to do but what your father wanted you to do. There was no such thing as saying no."

The sixth of nine children born to immigrants from Hiroshima, Enomoto recalled the hardships of growing up in Hawai'i during the Depression and the place females held in traditional Japanese families.

Her family moved from Waialua to Wahiawa after their house burned down when she was 3 years old. Enomoto grew up around Cane Street near Fred Wright Park. She attended Wahiawa Elementary School, which used to be where Wahiawa General Hospital is located.

She quit school midway through the seventh grade at Leilehua Intermediate and High School.

"Girls were expected to work, not go to school," she said. "I was 12 years old when my father asked me to quit school. In those days, 12 years old was adult already, not like today. My friends were working at Schofield as maids."

Enomoto's father sent her to live with Yasui and her husband in Waipahu's sugar camp.

"I went there to take care of her children, clean house and cook," she said. "I learned to sew and cut hair by watching my sister do it. Letting you watch was how they taught you."

Enomoto stayed with her sister for five years. Shortly after returning to her family home in Wahiawa, she set out to satisfy her father's request by becoming an apprentice to barber Mitsue Fujiwara.

"It was a good business because of the Army at Schofield," Enomoto said. "I would do the first cut and then Mrs. Fujiwara would do the corrections. I learned to cut (hair) by eye and how to treat customers from watching her."

Cutting hair by eye involves knowing how to use both the front and back mirrors in a barber shop, said Enomoto. "It's important for balance," she added, referring to the shape of the cut.

Enomoto was 21 years old when she purchased an existing barber shop across from Schofield Barracks. It was called Kemoo Barber Shop and she kept the name. Today, her business is one of the oldest in Wahiawa.

"I charged 35 cents for a haircut and 25 cents for a shave," Enomoto said. "Mostly soldiers, so I did a lot of G.I. cuts."

Enomoto moved her business to Kilani Avenue in October 1963. Her shop is on the ground floor of a two-story building owned by her and her husband.

Over the years, she has managed to keep up with trends.

"I remember when teenagers had to have that wet-hair, greasy look," Enomoto said. "Then we had the Elvis sideburns. Some Orientals had a hard time growing them because they had no hair. Now the crewcut is back."

Paul Gonsalves of Mililani has been going to Enomoto for haircuts since 1992.

"I trust her," Gonsalves, 27, said. "When I come in, she knows what I want. She's a perfectionist. I've been to other barbers but I was never satisfied with their work.

"With (Enomoto), I get a haircut and she massages my head, neck and shoulders with her hands. And she always gives me a hug and tells me to take care before I leave. I know she has a lot of customers. I heard about one guy, 70-something, who has been coming to her since he was 10."

There is no television set or radio in Enomoto's shop. "I mostly do bookwork or sew, so no need TV or radio," she said. "When I have customers, I enjoy listening to what they have to say.

"Some people are hard to please but I never met anyone bad to me," she added. "As long as I can make a go, I will continue to work. All these years, I'm thankful for my customers and especially the military. If the Army ever leaves, it's bye-bye everything for Wahiawa."