Shoe shining is an art form that demands a sustained power from anyone attempting to take on the craft. George a.k.a. The Shoe Doctor or The Glass Man has been shining Clevelanders shoes for close to thirty years.  He initially worked in the Leader Building, but now makes his living glazing up soles on the South end of the Hyatt Regency Arcade.

His employer, Brass Tack Shoe Repair is one of the last shoe repair/key shops still left in our city.  It is also located in the historic arcade and is one of just three shops (Federal Coin Exchange and Greek Express being the others) that were around prior to the Hyatt ownership.

The Shoe Doctor told SGS that we should let everybody know that he deals in both minor and major surgery. So please attempt to visit the good doctor before your soles move on to the hereafter.

In 2004, Plain Dealer writer Kathleen Murphy Conlan wrote a story about John Hawkins (pictured above).  The story caught the attention of SGS because we have always been fond of Mr. Hawkins’ sunny disposition. Recently the SGS crew was discussing how the gravitational pull of Cleveland’s darkness was making them hateful and complacent. Then we passed the “Hawk,” a man who despite life’s burdens is constantly reminding us of the human soul’s eternal light.

Against our better judgment and out of respect for the man who makes downtown worth visiting, we have lovingly reproduced the P.D. article about John Hawkins for your reading pleasure.

“Forty-seven days and a wake-up call till spring!” John Hawkins sings in a beautiful baritone. “That’s the doorman’s anthem in winter. We started the official countdown to spring at 62 days,” he says. Hawkins , 43, of Cleveland, sings happy greetings to hundreds of downtown travelers each day during his shift as one of three doormen for the Hyatt Hotel Cleveland at the Arcade . He sings, he says, to take his mind off the cold and to make people smile.

And they do smile.

“Watch their faces,” says Wayne Koury. Koury owns the nearby restaurant Frank & Pauly’s and passes through or by the Arcade almost every day. He enjoys Hawkins ’ gregarious nature. “He gets so many people to smile. I love it,” Koury adds.

At 6 feet and 220 pounds, Hawkins cuts a military presence in his long black wool overcoat, low-slung, armed forces-style cap and shiny patent-leather boots. People walking through the bustling Arcade entrance into the Hyatt seem surprised at the melodious, kind words that echo through the archway.

“What’s going on, my good man?” he asks with a quick salute to a passer-by.

“The sun favors those who smile the most,” he sings to another. Hawkins doesn’t stay idle for more than a minute. Between helping overnight guests with bags, giving directions to confused pedestrians and opening the heavy door for as many people as possible, Hawkins , a divorced father of one son, doesn’t have time to think about leaving home with the Army National Guard for Kosovo.

His unit, Company B of the 237th Forward Support Battalion in Newton Falls, has been on standby for active duty numerous times during the last year. Hawkins has served in the National Guard for three years, and has worked at the Hyatt for the past year.

“I’m not worried about going overseas,” he says. “My faith and my singing will get me through anything.”

Plain Dealer, The (Cleveland, OH) - Sunday, February 29, 2004