FAUQUIER SPRINGS and CHEERS

How many of you remember the TV show Cheers? It was on TV for 11 years (1982-1993), I never thought of it at the time, but this show with all of the laughs had an outstanding premises behind it.  Take a look at some of the words to the theme song. 

Making your way in the world today takes everything you've got. Taking a break from all your worries sure would help a lot. Wouldn't you like to get away? Sometimes you want to go Where everybody knows your name, and they're always glad you came. You wanna be where you can see, 
our troubles are all the same You wanna be where everybody knows Your name. 

Each year at this time I celebrate the day that I found my version of Cheers.  I remember like yesterday going to a public golf course and spending almost 7 hours standing around waiting to just get through the round.  I also remember that I was about to give up golf because I just couldn’t devote that much time to it, when one of my wife’s friends introduced me to her husband who was also a golfer.  After a couple of conversations with John, he told me about Fauquier Springs Country Club and said that I should consider membership.  Although I had a really good job at the time, I just kept thinking, how’s a poor kid from Jersey going to fit in with a bunch of folks at a Country Club? Despite my reservations, I decided to at go to the club with John and see what it was like. 

Now you have to understand my friend John, also grew up relatively poor, but in West Virginia, so the first thing that he told me was that I would probably run into a couple of 5 dollar millionaires, but that I should just ignore those folks as most of the people would be more than welcoming.  Our outing was great; we finished in less than 5 hours, had a couple of beers and chatted for a while.  John introduced me to the club manager who gave me a tour of the facilities, and offered me a membership packet on the spot.  I couldn’t wait to get home and tell my wife what a great experience I had (and get her approval to join the club).

On May 1, 1996 I became a member of Fauquier Springs Country Club (FSCC), and have been there now for 15 great years.  A few days after I joined, I was out playing 9 holes by myself; as I hit my tee shot on the second hole,  I heard someone coming down the 16^th fairway yelling “hey, haven’t seen you before, are you

 new”? When I replied yes, he and his female playing partner (I think it was his wife) came all the way down to the tee box to introduce themselves and welcome me to the club.  I knew at that moment I had made the right choice when I joined FSCC. 

For myself and many of my friends (most of whom are members at FSCC), this is our Cheers.  It’s where everyone truly knows our names, it’s where we go to let our hair down, enjoy an adult beverage, a good cigar and the company of the people that we know best.  If you’re a golfer, you can find a game every day of the week.  Let’s see, there are groups that play on Tuesday, Wednesday, seniors on Thursday, there’s a Friday group, and of course the Saturday and Sunday groups.  When I say groups, I’m not talking about a couple of foursomes, we have over 85 people on the list for all of these groups, and on most Saturdays and Sundays in the summer, it’s not uncommon to have as many as 40 or more players show up. 

In addition to golf, FSCC has an Olympic sized swimming pool, tennis courts and a recently added volleyball pit.  If you’re trying to teach your children the game of golf, there is an excellent Juniors program at the club that seems to expand every year.  The staff is excellent, from Pro Shop to the Grille Room, the people are always friendly and helpful, the beer is always cold and if like me you prefer the hard stuff, you can always get a good stiff pour.

Now “I’m Just Sayin”, there are clubs with bigger golf courses, more amenities, fancier club houses, or higher paid staff, but after 15 years and so many friendships, none of those places could ever be Cheers! It’s always nice to go where “Everybody knows your name, and their always glad you came”.  So here’s to you FSCC, “Cheers”