Gardner "Tussy" Toscano never turned a cold shoulder to anyone.
"I remember he was in line at the grocery store, and the woman in front of him didn't have enough money to pay for her groceries," recalled Toscano's son, Jim. "He paid the bill."
Mr. Toscano died Friday, March 4, 2005, at the age of 82.
A resident of Bear Rocks, Fayette County, Mr. Toscano commuted daily to Toscano's Beauty Salon and Barber Shop, a drive of better than an hour to the shop in Rostraver Township, Westmoreland County. He'd show at up at 5 a.m. and put in 12 hours.
"That was half a day, that's what he would say," his son said.
To say that barbering runs in the Toscano family is something of an understatement. Seven generations of barbers have graced the family tree. Mr. Toscano's grandfather earned a license in 1917 -- from Illinois, one of the first states to issue barber licenses.
That license hangs today in the family shop.
Mr. Toscano's chair is still surrounded by photographs of customers.
Toscanos were cutting hair at a time when barbers frequently doubled as physicians. In fact, according to Jim Toscano, his father's tonsils were removed by his father -- another barber.
Jim Toscano's son, "Little Jim," also chose the barbering profession. That made three generations of Toscanos working at the business in Rostraver.
Local legend has it that in the old days in West Newton, Mr. Toscano, starting work at 4 a.m. on Saturdays, would be greeted by up to 20 customers, waiting for barbering services after the night shift.
At one time, Mr. Toscano owned two shops in West Newton, employing seven barbers. He had also owned the Pleasant Inn, a Mt. Pleasant restaurant, and the Hitching Post, a bar-restaurant at the bottom of Three Mile Hill.
"Everybody loved my dad and my dad loved everybody," Jim Toscano said.
Toscano is survived by two sons, Jim, of West Newton, and Gary, of Las Vegas, Nev., their wives and children; and four daughters, Kathy Matulay, of Mt. Pleasant; Kristine Wineberg, of Hollywood, Fla.; Karolynne Griffiths, of Plantation, Fla. and Kim Fiesta, of York, their husbands and children.
Toscano's wife, Joyce, to whom he was married for 40 years, also survives, along with his former wife, Josephine.
Jim Toscano said his father requested that his dog, Lola, be remembered in his obituary. A white German shepherd, Lola and Mr. Toscano were "best friends," Jim Toscano said.
During World War II, Mr. Toscano entered the service at the age of 16. A year later he was promoted to sergeant and assigned to a chemical mortar battalion.
Mr. Toscano belonged to VFW Post 7812 and Moose Lodge 31, both in West Newton.
