Callum Anderson had no idea of the significance Thursday held. Such revelations are often lost on 17-month-olds.
So when he was seated — alone at first and then in the lap of his mother, Courtney — in Dean Korensky's barber chair at 33 Street Hair Studio, 2300 Winthrop Road, he couldn't help but notice all the fuss in his vicinity.
His parents were there. So was his newborn little brother. And his great-grandparents, who took turns circling the chair, distracting him with snacks, while Korensky worked quickly to give the towhead his first haircut.
And with the trim, which took less than 10 minutes and no more than that many passes with his silver scissors, it marked five generations of the Anderson family that have found themselves in Korensky's chair.
"I've done four generations many times, but never five," said Korensky, the Geneva native who came to barber college in Lincoln in the 1960s and has made it his calling for more than 54 years. "I won't make it to six generations."
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Never say never.
This family journey started innocently enough in the 1980s when Gary Anderson, then the principal at Nemaha Valley High School (now Johnson County Central), made the drive from Cook to get a haircut.
He found Korensky at the Clipper Barber Shop at 12th and O streets. He liked the experience so he kept going back.Â
"I always said that I wished there was a barbershop closer to home," he said.
There likely was, but Gary Anderson had found his barber. Korensky knew his craft and the conversations came easily. So every five or six weeks, he found himself in Korensky's chair.
A few years later, he brought his father, William Vernal Anderson, with him. Korensky gave each a haircut.
Shortly after that, his son Spencer found himself in Korensky's chair. And when Dalton — Gary's grandson and Callum's father — got his first haircut from Korensky, that marked four generations.
On Thursday, Callum became the fifth generation.
"It's special," Gary Anderson said. "We wanted Dean to give (Callum) his first haircut, to make it five generations. It's a special thing for us."
The significance isn't lost on Korensky, who has marked time by the hair he has cut. He remembers his first client and the day he gave that first haircut. His first day of work — in 1969.
He also mourned the death of that first client, who died five years ago at the age of 90.
"I guess I'm at that place where a lot of my friends are meeting that situation," he said.Â
Korensky left his chosen trade for about 18 months in the mid-1980s to pursue something else — an opportunity in the insurance industry, but realized he missed cutting hair.
He had little trouble getting his clients back and eventually changed shops a couple of times. He's been at 33 Street Hair Studio for four years, but has cut his workweek down to two days.
"I'm slowly sliding out but don't want to completely let it go just yet," he said.
Directions 2022: Changing times in Lincoln
Explore all of the articles, videos and photos in this year's Directions section here.
Several residential projects in or near downtown, including the 250-foot-tall Lied Place Residences, will open to residents this year.
Delta Nelson's entire life has been rooted in the auto industry, so it only made sense when she decided to open The Mechanix Garage in Lincoln.
Downtown Lincoln's population is expected to reach 10,000 in 2025 — a 730% increase since 2010.
The history, culture and DNA of the Cornhusker state are woven throughout the Scarlet, which is scheduled to open this spring.
Robin Eschliman's annual review of restaurants in Lincoln found more dining options opened in 2021 than shut down.
Over $2 billion worth of inventory was sold online through HiBid in 2021, and there are typically anywhere from 700,000 to 1 million items listed on the site at any given time.
Assurity's Jack Douglas moved with his wife from South Carolina in 2020, the height of the pandemic.Â
What started as an ambitious vision in 2015 has nearly come to fruition for Speedway Properties and Nelnet, which partnered together and bought more than a dozen properties in the once-blighted area in the 2010s.Â
Union Bank & Trust executive vice president Doris Robertson attributes the bank's recent success in part to the innovations the company made during the early days of the pandemic.
Before Boxcar BBQ officially served its first slab of ribs to a paying customer in October, the staff experimented with hundreds of pounds of meat and dozens of tweaks to their recipes.
Even when the work is hard and frustrating, Jayne Ellenwood says it fills her bucket to be a part of Bryan's response to the community.
The golf club that opened in 2001 has gone private and among its new features will be a 250-foot-long lazy river, an adults-only pool with a swim-up bar and a six-lane competition lap pool.
"I wrote thank-you cards to anyone that spent money with us. … I wrote hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of cards," owner Laurie Frasier said, even if someone only spent a few dollars.
With the South Beltway set to open next year, some developers worry the city isn’t thinking aggressively enough about spurring growth in an area still largely unserved by sewer and other infrastructure.
Jason Ball returns home to lead the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce with determination to "keep the ball rolling" for Lincoln as the city develops and grows.
CHI Health plans to open a new clinic at 40th Street and Yankee Hill Road, while Bryan Health will wrap up a multiyear expansion and renovation at its East Campus hospital.
Directions 2022: Growing chickens for Costco a link to origins of five-generation Seward County farm
Each of the eight Schulz Poultry barns holds 45,000 birds, which arrive at just a couple hours old and spend the next 42-44 days in the barns before going to Fremont for processing.
Jada Picket Pin said she enjoys serving first-time visitors to the Green Gateau, as well as regulars who return for the excellent food and quality service.
Christina Melgoza has seen big changes in Lincoln during her eight years as director of lot sales at Kreuger Development. She spoke to the Journal Star about Lincoln’s growth, the housing market and more.
Since CompanyCam's inception, more than 400 million photos have been stored and 15 million projects created largely by contractors looking to better document their work.
Monolith led a record year for investment in Lincoln-based companies, which collectively raised nearly $300 million in venture capital in 2021.Â
Many employees moved to remote work during COVID-19, a trend that's likely to stick around, experts say. But other pandemic effects, such as labor shortages and pay increases, are likely to be short-term changes.
A fundraising campaign brought in more than $10.3 million for the 7 acres of land near the airport and the 60,000-square-foot new office building and warehouse, almost doubling the Food Bank's current space.
Watch Now: Veteran coach and broadcaster Derrick Pearson brings a new sports radio vision to Lincoln
Jay Foreman, Erick Strickland and Vershan Jackson have shows on the The Ticket, which also has programs featuring 22 current Nebraska athletes.
The Journal Star invited businesses and other offices celebrating an anniversary divisible by five this year to share their history with readers.
The Journal Star invited readers to share honors that businesses or employees received as best of state, region or nation. Also included is a recap of the major awards presented by business organizations locally.
In June, the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce resumed ribbon-cutting events to mark new businesses, businesses with new owners, relocated and renovated businesses, business anniversaries and ground-breaking ceremonies.