'No Words To Describe It': Street Named For RVC Barber

ROCKVILLE CENTRE, NY — Lyndon Johnson was president of the United States and Martin Luther King Jr. was preaching across the country in the final months of his life.

It was February 1968 when Jose Dominguez started his life as a Rockville Centre barber. A fixture in the community, Dominguez received the ultimate honor Saturday when the street in front of his Pioneer Hair Designs barbershop was renamed Jose Dominguez Way at a surprise Chamber of Commerce ceremony.

"There are no words to describe it," Dominguez, 84, told Patch. "It was unbelievable."

Dominguez came to Rockville Centre by way of Cuba. He started cutting hair on Maple Avenue, before buying his shop on North Park Avenue 22 years ago.

"I love it here," he said. "I think it's the best village around here."

Many of his customers have been regulars for decades, and he made new friends along the way, like Diocese of Rockville Centre Bishop John Barres. However, his 53 years of service can be bittersweet as well.

"I lost a lot of customers," Dominguez said, recalling just a few months ago giving someone a haircut days before he died.

Dominguez, who comes to work in a comfortable, all-white garb with sandals and a respirator mask, lives above the shop.

There is no commute for Dominguez, but despite his advancing age, he has no thoughts of retiring. Not only does he enjoy interacting with his customers, but he is still active in charity work.

He will make house calls to sick or infirm people, especially veterans.

"Thank you, that's all. That's my charge," he said.

Dominguez has also cut clients' hair free of charge at hospitals and nursing homes, but that was halted amid the pandemic.

Summing up his longevity, Dominguez put it this way: "I love people ... That's my life. I think I can still do this. I try to do the best."