March 21, 2023 Volume XVI # 12

 

Kitchen Hours This Weekend -- Friday: closed Saturday: 8:30-3:00 Sunday: 8:30-1:00

 

Events This Week

Saturday: Bar Open 4:00 - 8:00 (We hope!)

 

In This Issue

-Final Weekend on the Slopes

-Stag’s Head Lounge

-Carnival Weekend Was Fun!

-Check the Lost and Found

-Memories of the Club and Thank You to Sue by Stephanie Williams

 

Final Weekend on the Slopes

Caberfae’s website is calling Saturday and Sunday “one final weekend of skiing and riding.” That means it’s the final winter weekend at the club too. Sue is sure to have some end-of-season specials in store, so enjoy a delicious breakfast, lunch, and snack before, between, and after your final runs on the slopes. A ticket agent will be in the club on Saturday and Sunday mornings.

 

Stag’s Head Lounge

The bar will not open on Friday, since the ski area and club will be closed. We hope to have a final night of fun on Saturday, but are currently looking for bartenders. Please let Katie know if you can help out. (secretary-treasurer@caberfaeskiclub.org) We’re hopeful we’ll be able to serve you your final après ski beverages.

 

Carnival Weekend Was Fun!

Thank you to Sue, Paul Waug, and Carol Lee for making sure there were folks to serve drinks last weekend. Thank you also to Paul for arranging some great music for Saturday night. We appreciate the efforts of all who make our club such a wonderful place to be.

 

Check the Lost and Found

Before you pack up your gear for the final time, it never hurts to check the Lost and Found for items you may have misplaced.

 

Memories of the Club and Thank You to Sue -- by Stephanie Williams 

 

A new club friend asked me about my upbringing at the club last weekend and my eyes welled up describing our Friday ritual up 131 and the line of bunk beds in my Grandpa’s attic. I went on to tell her how I met my husband one winter after his grandma suggested “maybe you’ll meet a nice girl at the club” and the eventual proposal on the upstairs deck. And now I stood there watching my own son ski "them racing gates" as he calls them, standing proudly on the stairs with his medal for a picture with Dad and Uncle Wink. My other son, Charlie, who is named after the South Peak run we've made thousands of times, climbs up to be part of it.

 

It got me reminiscing of the ski club of my childhood. The one with duct tape over blue cushions, furniture dressed in layers of paint, worn carpet and history that covered the walls, as new history was made within. In those days, the dining room would spill into the round room for Saturday night dinner and we’d form a line to the stairs to take our turn at the buffet. Mrs. Fortenbacher, Mrs. Lemay, Robin, Joan and others would dim the lights and turn our little clubhouse starry with tinsel, linens and candles and occasionally an accordion would serenade the room. We'd play tag and hide and seek around the club, my favorite spot being the old vestibule off the back, which was later removed to make space for more lockers. On special occasions, we'd get invited upstairs, notably on Valentine's Day where Grandpa and others would play the electric keyboard and everyone would singalong.

 

I don’t remember a ski club without Sue in it. She’s part of our fabric. For as long as I can remember, Sue has been the kind, smiling face behind the counter, whether it was exchanging a look in excitement after sneaking another cinnamon roll onto Grandpa’s tab or going athrough the line at those Saturday night club dinners. She’s behind the scenes, quietly taking care of us. The lady who stoked the round room fire all those years, before it was stoked by the convenience of a switch. Who stocks our favorites and knows all our quirky lunch preferences. And who cultivates a team who cares behind the counter. We’ll all remember fondly our favorite Sue menu items—I’ll miss a Sue burger and breakfast the most— but also the comfort that comes with her consistent presence over the years. To say we’ll miss her is an understatement and our club simply won’t be the same without her. Her departure is a reminder that this comfort is not necessarily a given. That this place is made possible because people make it this way and our collective vision and aspirations for the club shape its future.

 

Every weekend, we drive forty-five minutes past Crystal Mountain to be at Caberfae. It isn't the old ski runs that bring us back, but rather the community, the tradition, and the nostalgia. The clubhouse is steeped in history and you can find memories in every corner. This community offers comfort in sameness--my kids will sneak those same cinnamon rolls, race through the same double door vestibule, and stand on the same staircase asking to be passed a basket of popcorn. I can only hope that this place will offer the same space it did for me to hear the stories of the generations before them, to develop meaningful relationships with their grandparents on that South Peak chair, and to find lifelong friendship. To have a place that always feels like home.

 

Coming Events

-Spring Work Bee—Saturday, May 6th

-Fourth of July Bike Ride and Picnic—watch for details

 

Do you have an article you’d like to submit to the newsletter? Contact editor@caberfaeskiclub.org

 

This is your club. Comments and suggestions are welcomed. Contact caberfaeskiclub@caberfaeskiclub.org