Anthony Cymerys 82-year-old barber who has been giving free haircuts to the homeless in exchange for hugs for 25 years.

He brings his chair, clippers and car battery to local parks

City health officials said they ordered Cymerys out of the park Wednesday after unnamed local residents expressed concerns about the "safety and sanitation" of Cymerys' free haircuts to homeless people and his friends' food distribution. They also noted that Cymerys is not a licensed barber.
A spokeswoman for Mayor Pedro Segarra said later Thursday that he granted Cymerys a special dispensation in light of his years of charitable work.

He said he always takes health precautions including soaking his trimmers in alcohol.

"Twenty-five years I've been giving haircuts, and no one died on me," he said.

“He gives a person a sense of well-being and makes them look good and feel good about themselves,” said Gervase Jennings, who is homeless and one of Cymerys’ loyal customers.