Cheyenne Barber's Turnaround Takes Him From Prison To Being A 'Real Person'

Gilbert Lucas’s life was going so well at the time he opened his Cheyenne barber shop in 2024 that he grew afraid to speak his dreams out loud and jinx it all.

“When we were opening up, I was afraid to speak because anything I said was happening,” he told Cowboy State Daily during an interview at his Randall Avenue shop. “Anything that I requested in the world just showed up with a little ribbon on it.”

The moment for Lucas was a monumental one given how turbulent his life had been before that point.

Lucas had been a criminal and went to prison before becoming a nationally-recognized barber, and even having his name inscribed on statues in Cheyenne.

The experience taught him how to lead with love and look for the beauty in life, he said.

“It just baffles me to realize how much people can care and just how easy it is for people to want to give and to be kind,” he said. “I’m in the human industry. Barbering is just one way to cut it.”

While cutting hair in his shop Friday, he easily chats with clients and isn't shy about sharing his story. It's one Lucas said he doesn't believe himself at times, because it chronicles how he "went from being in prison to being a 'real' person."

Life Of Crime

In high school, Lucas had planned to join the Marine Corps before applying to Texas A&M’s business management program. Those dreams fell apart, however, when health issues prevented him from joining the military.

“[The military] was the way out of what I was doing,” he said. “So screw it, let’s go right to [crime] then.”

Lucas said he cooperated with a friend to rob the cash register at the TacoTime restaurant in Casper where he worked. He said the decision was less out of a desire for money than it was a desire for power.

“I was struggling with power, I was struggling with leading,” Lucas said. “I didn’t know how to lead healthily. I didn’t know what leading with love looked like. I only knew what leading with fear looked like.”

When authorities learned of Lucas’s crime, he fled across the country from Washington to California to Idaho. He managed to evade detection until he was pulled over in Washington for failing to use his turn signal.

Lucas was arrested and shipped back to Wyoming. During a stop along the way in Montana, Lucas said he spent five straight days locked in a cell with a “philosopher” who began to help him open his mind.

That experience led Lucas to attend classes at Casper College while out of jail on bail. During that time, he studied public speaking, social work and psychology.

When prosecutors caught up to him again, Lucas said he was offered a plea deal to rat out his coconspirator in exchange for a lighter sentence. Lucas turned down the deal, which left him with a potential sentence of 15 to 25 years in prison, he said.

“I said ‘that’s my brother, I never tell on my brother,’” Lucas said. 

Lucas was able to secure a shorter sentence for agreeing to admit his role in planning the robbery. He initially attended a prison boot camp, which mimics military training with the intention of instilling discipline in criminals. 

Lucas said that was one of the most difficult things he had ever endured.

“If you’re sick, you’re throwing up, that does not mean you stop running,” he said. “You pick the trash can up, you run with it.

“The next morning I went to the drill instructor and said ‘You can go ahead and take me, I’m ready to go to prison,’” Lucas added.

Over three years in prison, Lucas said he learned how to braid hair, which became the first step toward becoming a barber. He said returning to life outside of prison was a disorienting experience after so long in incarceration.

“When I came out, I immediately asked to go back,” Lucas said. “When I saw the stars, I threw up from sensory overload.”

Reintegration

Lucas began to integrate back into society, starting with a job at The Office Bar and Grill in Cheyenne. His goal at the time was to pursue a career as a barber, thanks to encouragement from a friend.

Lucas’s coworkers would constantly point out odd quirks in his behavior which he had picked up in prison.

“We had a conversation, I said ‘let me know if anything is weird that I’m doing,’” Lucas said. “(A coworker) told me probably about three times a day that something I was doing was off the rocker.”

Despite his behavior, Lucas said he became close with a group of community leaders working on the capitol bronze project who regularly visited the restaurant. Their positive interactions allowed Lucas to join the project.

“They ended up liking me and when I told them ‘I want to be a barber,’ they said ‘we want you to continue to serve this party’ and ‘we love you around here,’” Lucas said.

Lucas said he played a role in the design process of the statues, watching them from the early drawing stage through to being cast at a bronze foundry. His name was even included on two of the statues positioned outside the Capitol Building and The Wrangler.

These interactions led him to become close with city leaders including Mayor Patrick Collins, who, Lucas said, presented him a challenge coin upon the completion of his probation.

“They do the reveal and I see my name on there,” he said. “Like how amazing.”

National Competitions

Lucas’s next step was joining Ethnic Hair Care and Cuts, a hair salon in Cheyenne. There, he quickly began to distinguish himself as one of the shop’s top barbers.

“They really amplified my growth when to came to the industry,” he said. “They really put me in the position to make sure I was doing traveling and educations.”

He started competing in national hair cutting competitions in places like Las Vegas, Nevada, New Jersey and San Antonio, Texas.

Thousands of spectators watch the stage, as “we’re doing the fastest fades, and design competitions and the works,” he said of the competitions.

During this time, Ethnic Hair decided to move to a location in the mall, which prompted Lucas to strike out on his own. Because of his time in jail, Lucas owed over $10,000 in rent to a previous landlord, meaning he was unable to rent a building to start work.

When he told a hair client his plans to work out of his basement, the client decided to help.

“He’s like ‘you do not deserve to be dimmed like that,’” Lucas said. “So he’s like ‘I’m going to do everything I can to make sure that the light [in you] comes out.”

That client became his business partner and cosigned a lease with Lucas on a location down the road from the Capitol Building.

Everything appeared to be falling into place until Lucas received a call that his mother was in the hospital.

“Next thing you know, she has a less than 10% chance of life,” Lucas said.

While he wanted to visit his mother, Lucas needed to receive visits from the Board of Cosmetology, Fire Department and other city officials to get his shop off the ground, which could take weeks. He planned to drop everything and go, but his business partner encouraged him to wait.

“So do we keep rolling in success or do we be present in motherhood?” Lucas asked. 

He started cultivating his faith and learned to trust that the situation was out of his hands, he said. Once he accepted that, his situation started to improve.  

Each of the official entities visited Lucas’s shop within three days, allowing him the time to visit his mother. While her condition was improving, Lucas said he couldn’t fully invest in his burgeoning shop knowing she was still hospitalized.

“I remember we had a trunk or treat [event]… and I remember just sitting here crying all night,” he said. “Just setting up this for the children, but you just don’t know if my mom’s going to make it.”

Business Is Booming

Lucas’s mom went on to make a full recovery, giving him time to focus on his shop. He said he toured several other businesses across the surrounding states in search of a way to distinguish his own shop.

During that search, Lucas discovered the subscription model which allowed clients to pay a recurring fee in return for two haircuts per month. He recalled landing several clients via this deal, which let him begin to branch out into community advocacy.

Lucas became involved with Christmas charity work, youth organizations, Hispanic pride events and other initiatives geared toward improving the city of Cheyenne.

He said that gave him an incredible sense of momentum.

“It just feels so effortless because they’ve already poured so much into my cup that it just feels impossible to fail,” he said.

That was around the time when Lucas said he began to fear what he was capable of achieving.

“I had the sense of power again,” he said, contrasting from his criminal days. “I got really discouraged for a second because I didn’t want to lose control like I had before.”

Lucas began to participate in the Hugh O’Brien Youth Leadership (HOBY) program, which allowed him to mentor high schoolers in cultivating a positive mindset. He rose through the ranks of this organization to become director of recruitment for the state of Wyoming.

Mentoring others taught Lucas how to lead with love, he said.

“It’s just a very beautiful program,” Lucas added.

Going To Alaska

Despite all the success he’s has in Cheyenne, Lucas said he is moving to Alaska in search of greater opportunities. He said the decision is due to the safety net he feels he’s cultivated in Wyoming.

“I don’t think I’m ever going to be away from Wyoming,” Lucas said. “Now I’m in the position where I’m able to go. No kids, no wife and I’ve got the money to do so fortunately.”

“I could go anywhere in the entire world and if it doesn’t work, I have home here,” he added.

With his hope of being a father someday, Lucas said he hopes to travel the world gaining skills and experiences which he missed during his time in prison. Among his goals are visiting golf courses and going boating.

“I want to be open to what life has to offer,” Lucas said. “So I really just want to , just enjoy some outside skills. Go enjoy some life.”

Contact Jackson Walker at jackson@cowboystatedaily.com

Jackson Walker can be reached at walker@cowboystatedaily.com.