Missouri Guard retiree takes ownership of local barber shop

January 3, 2013 at 5:55 a.m. | Updated January 3, 2013 at 5:55 a.m.

by Sarah E. Lupescu

Missouri National Guard retired Master Sgt. Mike Tanner, left, cuts Rich McCarty's hair at his barber shop in Jefferson City. Tanner used his Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits to attend the Missouri School of Barbering and Hairstyling after he retired from the Guard in the spring.
Missouri National Guard retired Master Sgt. Mike Tanner, left, cuts Rich McCarty's hair at his barber shop in Jefferson City. Tanner used his Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits to attend the Missouri School of Barbering and Hairstyling after he retired from the Guard in the spring.

A retired Missouri Army National Guardsman is a new small business owner.

Retired Master Sgt. Mike Tanner, who spent 26 years in the military, took over Rich's Barber Shop in Jefferson City after graduating in November from the Missouri School of Barbering and Hairstyling in Florissant.

"There is life after retirement," Tanner said. "I've always wanted to run my own business and I wanted to be in the service-oriented business."

The barber shop was established in January 1960. Rich and Donna McCarty, the shop's previous owners, took possession of the business in the 1990s. Rich is retiring after cutting hair for 48 years.

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