Longtime Mount Vernon barber, city councilmember reflects on his career

MOUNT VERNON - After 42 years as a barber at Ken's Hairstyling, Gary Molenaar retired in May. His father Ken opened the barber shop in 1958, making it one of the oldest businesses in downtown Mount Vernon.

Four decades as a barber and 16 years on the Mount Vernon City Council put Molenaar in a unique position in the community - one that he enjoyed, but was ready to take a break from.

Cutting hair wasn't Molenaar's first career choice, but circumstances led him to the profession he came to love.

Molenaar graduated from Washington State University in June 1983, and in July of that year married his wife Rhondi. He planned to work as a juvenile probation officer.

But in January 1984, his father Ken died of a heart attack at the age of 49.

His father's unexpected death left his family wondering what to do with the barber shop.

Molenaar's mother had doubts about running the shop without Ken, but Molenaar didn't want his father's shop to close.

So he decided he would take over the shop. He told his mother, and within two weeks of his father's death, he was enrolled in barber school.

"It was definitely a big life switch," he said.

Rhondi also happened to be a hair stylist, and they began working at the shop together, where they remained for 42 years. Rhondi retired in December.

Over the years, Molenaar developed relationships with his customers.

He said he loved being a barber because it allowed him to interact with such a wide range of people - giving him what he calls the "spice of life."

"You get Republicans, Democrats, Independents. You have very religious, not religious. So you get to see what's going on in your town, just the different diversity of people," Molenaar said.

What he found was that most of the time, the best thing he could offer customers was a haircut, and a chance to be heard.

"Just ask questions, and you know what, most people just want to be heard," Molenaar said.

Regardless of what was going on in the lives of his customers, Molenaaar wanted them to feel as if they could talk to him, he said.

"I am really thankful for all my clients, and I'll miss that … We learn about families, and even things you probably shouldn't know," he joked.

With that, Molenaar learned the value of confidentiality.

Keeping customers' comments to himself was something he picked up from his father, and is something Molenaar strongly believes in.

"Not talking about other people … I remember my dad saying that, you know, but he didn't teach me that, I just heard that from him when I was growing up," Molenaar said.

Sometimes Molenaar had uncomfortable conversations about personal troubles and grief, but he wanted customers to feel comfortable sharing that with him.

Molenaar's approach to his relationship with customers led to many strong bonds.

For years, former Mount Vernon Mayor Bud Norris was a customer of Ken's Hairstyling, back when he had hair to be cut, Norris joked.

Before Molenaar cut Norris' hair, his father Ken cut his hair, and Norris attended the same church as the Molenaar family.

"I've known Gary since he was a little chap," Norris said.

Norris came to think that Molenaar would be a good fit for the Mount Vernon Planning Commission.

"I never knew him to make a real rapid, slam-dunk decision. He took his time making the decision, which is a credible thing for him," Norris said. "You get to know your barber pretty well."

With Norris' encouragement, Molenaar began serving on the Planning Commission, and after about a year he decided to run for City Council. He served on the council from 2010 through 2025.

In his 16 years on council, Molenaar saw several city projects evolve and eventually come to fruition - but the Mount Vernon floodwall was maybe the longest, and most significant project that he worked on, Norris said.

In Molenaar's time on the council, he helped carry the floodwall project across three mayoral administrations, Norris said.

"It was great, because definitely I was very concerned about the floodwall," Molenaar said. "The city was able to get that put up, which has been a blessing."

Though Molenaar's life ended up going in directions he hadn't planned, he found himself in the center of the community he grew up in.

There have been some challenges over the years, he said, mostly relating to heart issues he inherited from his father.

In 1996, when Molenaar was 34 years old, he felt chest pain while exercising.

He didn't think much of it, but at the request of his wife he went to a doctor.

The doctor immediately found something wrong, and had Molenaar rushed to an Everett hospital for surgery.

That night Molenaar had triple bypass heart surgery. He said the artery on the left side of his heart was about 99% blocked.

He said that if it wasn't for his wife, the doctor, and his surgery, he likely would have had a heart attack.

"I'm very thankful," Molenaar said. "Second chances."

Second chances are something Molenaar is very grateful for, he said, as he believes he's had several of them.

Last year, while on vacation with his family in Germany, Molenaar felt the same pain in his chest that he had 30 years earlier.

When he returned from vacation, he had another heart surgery, this time on the right side of his heart.

"I'm feeling good. Replumbed," Molenaar joked. "Got the left side and the right side covered now. But that was definitely another little bit of a wake-up call."

Molenaar said that following his second heart surgery he thought, "You know what? Maybe it's time to take a break while I still have it."

Molenaar's belief in second chances stems from his faith.

He believes that God had plans for him other than to become a probation officer, and that God has played a role in his health.

"(The 1996 surgery) was definitely a second chance. And then the other second chance is just knowing what I would know now, how all those events lined up with my dad dying, the business, and how that just kind of shaped the journey over the years," Molenaar said. "I believe the Lord gave me a lot of second chances."

When deciding to retire, it was important to Molenaar that his father's business continued.

Molenaar's decision to retire was made easier because he knew the barber shop would be in good hands.

Molenaar passed the business along to Jerry Brookings, who has worked at Ken's Hairstyling since 2002.

"He's the best employee I ever had," Molenaar said of Brookings.

Brookings said it's an honor to continue the Molenaar's family business.

"I wanted to hold on to Ken's name, because within two years we can celebrate 70 years as Ken's Hairstyling," Brookings said. "I felt it was important for Ken's to actually reach that 70-year mark."

Brookings said that Molenaar was nurturing and supportive when Brookings first started at Ken's Hairstyling.

Brookings said Molenaar always put the customers first, and had a great work ethic - two traits that Brookings picked up.

"Clients got a double blessing. They got a haircut and a chance to voice and share their opinions and to hear from him," Brookings said. "They could hear how he felt about certain things, and that definitely played into the haircutting, because I could tell some people were actually almost here more for the discussion than they were for the haircut, and that seemed to work really well."

Now that Molenaar has retired, he anticipates he'll find new ways to stay connected to the community, but for now he's looking forward to taking a break.

After 42 years of standing around the barber chair cutting hair, he'll finally have a chance to sit down, spend time with his six grandkids, and go fly fishing - an activity that kept him grounded throughout his career, he said.

"It was time to get off my feet," Molenaar said. "I need to sit down for a little bit ... And tie some flies."

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This story was originally published July 3, 2026 at 7:05 AM.