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Pam Greenfield — helping seniors

Cuts hair for Colonial Manor residents, involved in fundraising

Photo by Jenny Kirk Dedicated hairdresser Pam Greenfield takes time to pose for a quick photo in between serving residents recently at the Colonial Manor of Balaton.

BALATON — Hairdresser Pam Greenfield has operated her beauty shop in downtown Balaton for more than 40 years, but a lot of people might not be aware of all the other things she does — or has done over the years — because she doesn’t seek any recognition and prefers to help out behind the scenes.

“Over the years, Pam has done a lot,” fellow Balaton resident Denise Hoek said. “She doesn’t say anything about it. She just does it.”

Greenfield opened Pam’s Boutique in 1977. Many longtime customers recall her dedication even when her son, Tyler, was young.

“I took maybe one year off and then worked three days a week when Tyler was little,” she said. “People remember him being there playing with his toys. He’s 27 now.”

About 12 years ago, Greenfield began offering haircutting services to nursing home residents at the Colonial Manor of Balaton. Like her regular customers, she said she enjoyed building relationships with the residents.

“I love learning about their life’s journeys and hearing about how things were during the Great Depression,” Greenfield said. “They talk about the things they had to give up, how they lived when they were young and their hardships and good times. They get to feel like family.”

The rural Balaton resident also taught Sunday School and Bible School for many years and spent several years helping organize Balaton Fun Fest events and volunteering for Chamber activities.

“She’s kind of behind the scenes, but Pam always goes the extra mile,” Hoek said. “She’s always thinking of other people.”

Greenfield was also instrumental in Laker (formerly Skandia) 4-H activities and fundraising efforts the entire time her son was in 4-H. Her husband, Norm, also volunteered and was especially helpful with the massive amounts of fresh fruit deliveries they made each year.

“I enjoyed helping out where I could,” she said. “With 4-H, though, there just comes a time to stop and let somebody else step up and help.”

Currently, Greenfield starts her week at 6 a.m. on Tuesday, doing shampoo sets and haircuts for the Colonial Manor residents. Most afternoons, she’s back at her shop along Main Street. Her Wednesday schedule is the same.

“I start at 6 a.m. because some of the residents get up early, have a shower and eat breakfast before activities start,” she said. “Sometimes I work residents in during the afternoons, too, especially if they need a perm or something.”

Greenfield is at her beauty shop downtown on Thursdays as well as on Friday mornings. In the afternoon on Fridays, she heads back to the Manor to serve residents next door at Lakeview Assisted and Independent Living.

“I work four days a week, but if it’s a resident’s birthday or they have family coming or something, I’ll go in and do their hair even if it’s a Sunday or Monday,” Greenfield said. “I’ve done that quite a bit for people. If it makes them feel good, it’s worth it to me.”

While families do pay for services, Greenfield said she doesn’t offer her services for the money.

“You don’t do it for the paycheck,” she said. “It’s to help the residents — the ladies and the men. They’re so appreciative. That’s what you do it for.”

While Greenfield tries to balance her schedule between the two locations, she said there’s downtime sometimes.

“You might have to wait for the residents to eat breakfast or they might not be feeling good and want to go back to bed,” Greenfield said. “I’ll see if I can squeeze them in later on in the day. I try and work around their schedules. I do have a more set schedule at the shop downtown, though.”

Greenfield typically uses the downtime to help out in various ways at the nursing home.

“She’s so good to the residents there,” Hoek said. “She does their hair and also helps out in other ways there, too.”

The kind gestures mirror Greenfield’s giving nature and do not go unnoticed by those closest to her even though Greenfield doesn’t believe it’s out of the ordinary.

“It’s just stuff you do,” she said. “I’ll help push people out to the activities or push them back to their rooms if they need it. Sometimes I’ll sit down with someone doing a jigsaw puzzle lend and ear to listen or sing a silly song. I just try to make their day a little better.”

While she enjoys her job, Greenfield said some days can be tough at the Colonial Manor.

“There are some bad days, too, like when one of them dies,” she said. “You get close to them and their families. They often become like family to you.”

Those strong connections have led Greenfield to take on the additional responsibility of styling hair for the recently deceased.

“I do a lot of funeral hair if the family requests it,” Greenfield said. “I go to the funeral home and do their hair for the last time. It’s my last hurrah for them, so I make them look as good as I can.”

Roughly a decade ago, psoriatic arthritis threatened to put Greenfield out of business, but she persevered and was able to keep working.

“About 10 years ago, my psoriatic arthritis got really bad,” she said. “Fortunately, there was medicine that worked good.”

Along with taking pain medicine, Greenfield got a weekly shot to help control the chronic pain. Six years later, though, a double cancer scare created additional challenges.

“Four years ago, I got cervical cancer,” she said. “Then when they did an MRI, the doctors realized that I also had a lump on my right kidney. Luckily, they were both in the early stages.”

After having the cancer surgically removed, Greenfield wasn’t able to work for about a month. When she returned, she learned that her customers had her back the whole time.

“When I came back and was fixing hair, customers were saying, ‘You know, I was praying every night for you. Get that cancer gone!'” she said. “To me, that was priceless.”

While Greenfield is close to being four years clear of cancer, the first two years after getting the cancer diagnosis were really tough for her because she wasn’t allowed to take the weekly injection for pain relief and the arthritis pain flared up.

“My cancer oncology doctor said to get off that shot,” Greenfield said. “I had to go two years without that. It took four to five months before the arthritis got really bad again. My left hand is worse, so thankfully I use my right hand more to cut hair.”

Despite arthritis in her hands, feet and spine — the worst combination for hairdressers — Greenfield said she plans to work for as long as she can, adding that the pain is better most of the time when she continues using her joints and limbs.

“I’m grateful I’ve been able to keep working because the more I work, the better I feel,” she said.

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