Sal the Barber

I wrote this story for the Two River Times in  October, 2018 when Sal the Barber celebrated his 100^th birthday. Born in Capo d’Orlando in Sicily, he picked lemons and learned to be an outstanding cook, and at the age of 12, was already well into learning the tonsorial trade.

Well known in Jersey City for his laughter, and his joy of life. Sal the Barber died April 9 of this year and is buried at Mount Olivet. True to his penchant for genersoity and giving to others, his family asked that any memorials for Sal be in the form of donations to St. Jude’s Hospital. A great man.

They were all there, the sons and daughter and their spouses, the grandchildren and their spouses, the great grandchildren, the cousins and other family members from across the country from Hawaii and California to other parts of New Jersey. And they all had a wonderful time at the Little Silver home of his daughter Nina and her husband, Ron Riccio … But if the truth be known it was the 100-year-old Salvatore Librizzi whose birthday all were celebrating who had the most fun.

Tall, distinguished looking, with excellent eyesight and a sharp mind and memory, Sal delighted everyone with his stories of the last ten decades, a life filled with good humor, hard work, loving family, and a talent for making other people happy at the gathering of more than 75 friends and relatives on Oct. 6.

Now living in Little Silver, Sal came to the United States in 1936 with his mother and two sisters, to join his father and brother already in their new homeland escaping the dictatorship of Benito Mussolini and making a home for the family on Monument Street in Jersey City.

Sal was 17 and already had a trade; he had learned barbering at his Godfather’s shop in Sicily, opting for that rather than the tailor apprenticeship his mother originally suggested.  “I didn’t want to sit in a shop and watch a tailor sew for a couple hours after sitting a couple of hours in a classroom” he explains solemnly. Watching his Godfather and meeting all the customers in the barber shop was much more fun.

Once in the United States, Sal went to work immediately cutting hair in Ralph Morelli’s barbershop. But he also helped out in his father’s produce market in downtown Jersey City, and presumably that’s where his affection for great fruits and vegetables and his great ability to cook grew and developed. Today, Sal can name all the flowers in his garden, and can tell you how to season freshly picked zucchini with garlic and oil and make enough to keep some in the freezer for further meals.

It was eight months after the attack on Pearl Harbor that Sal, who had tried to enlist in the Navy earlier but was told to go home because he was an immigrant, was drafted in the Army. Less than six months later, he was a United State citizen.

After four years in the army, serving with the 795^th Military Police Battalion throughout Europe and the South Pacific, Sal returned home to Jersey  City  and met his wife at a church dance, one he only attended after he walked two miles from the Sicilian Club “because nobody was there.” Francesca came from “uptown” in Jersey City but the two fell quickly in love, married in 1948, and raised their children while he continued to make his living as a barber.

Sal and his brother Dominic opened Librizzi Barber Shop at the corner of Ege and West Side Avenue and had a successful 55 years of tonsorial work until Sal retired.

Life has changed over the past century, Sal is quick to point out, and it isn’t as easy or as much fun as it used to be . Where in his youth he could walk safely along any streets in Jersey City, it isn’t so any more, he explains. “It’s narcotics. Too much of that. And kids don’t listen to their parents. It’s a shame. So much has been destroyed.”

But even with the changes, life is certainly wonderful in the United States, he is quick to point out. He still enjoys gardening, likes several TV shows he watches regularly, including Jeopardy, and walks two miles a day, once in the morning, once in the afternoon.

He loves fishing, was a great crabber and loves the beach. He and Francesca had a wonderful loving 68 years together until her death three years ago following a long illness in which Sal was her primary helpmate and caregiver.

His children, Sal and his wife Eva live in Manasquan and Joe and his wife Mary Ann live in Howell, together with Nina and Ron visit  often as do grandchildren and great grands, and all keep in touch frequently and keep Sal up on all the family events.

So, to what does this charming centenarian credit with his long and healthy life?  Well, he’ll explain with a grin, he doesn’t ever drink wine, the result of helping his father for many years making wine in the family basement. The aroma of the fermenting liquid was definitely not to his liking and turned him off liking any alcohol. He admits to a cigarette or two or three a day a while back, but said he never smoked much. His favorite beverage is Coca Cola, and he has some coffee, but not much. He has inherited good genes, with a lot of longevity, so that could be one reason.

Or, he explains, with that twinkle in his eyes again. “Maybe it’s just from being nice, being kind, and loving everybody.  God’s been good to me, so I want to be good to God.”