F. E. Warren barber makes the final cut Published April 26, 2013 By 2nd Lt. Christen Downing 90th MW Public Affairs F. E. WARREN AIR FORCE BASE, Wyo. -- After serving F. E. Warren since 1988, Rita Gentry is scheduled to retire from the Base Exchange Barber Shop April 27. Gentry, the current Barber Shop manager, explains how leaving is bitter sweet. "I get to talk to all the different guys who come from all over, and I really enjoy that," Gentry said. Some of her customers have even been coming back for more than 20 years. "I've known some of them since they were Airmen, before they got married and now since they've had children," she said. Gentry recalls Col. Christopher Coffelt, 90th Missile Wing commander, who has been stationed at Warren three times; and each time, she was his barber. "He still laughs just like he did when he was a captain," Gentry said. "These officers like him, I don't forget them, and they haven't forgotten me either." Giving an average of approximately 600 haircuts per month to customers from military men and women to retirees and children, her favorite part of the job is building relationships with her customers. "It's these guys I see every week. I'm going to miss that," Gentry said. "Leaving them, that's kind of the sad part." Not only has she had the pleasure of watching some of her customers grow up over the years, but she also has gotten to watch the Warren community mature over the past 25 years. "The base has developed into such a pretty place," Gentry said. "It has only gotten nicer." Despite her love for the job, she is looking forward to the extra time she will have and is already planning how she will spend it. "I feel like it's my time," she said. "I'm going to go fishing, ride a four-wheeler, go camping, fix my front yard and put in a flower bed or two." Even though she is retiring, she plans to continue residing in Cheyenne and hopes to run into past customers out-and-about in town.