12/08/2025
what a beautiful, wonderful thing it is to be loved.
a year ago today, this bar served it's final drinks and communed with it's family one last time.
and what a way it went out.
this place saw everything. it witnessed friends come together and cemented lifelong bonds. it saw bloody noses and broken teeth. it held groups of youthful bodies squished together in bathroom stalls. it held many gut-busting laughs, and the divots in its floors caught its weight in tears. in the most mystifying way, though, it nurtured love while it blossomed to bloom, and caught the pieces when (and if) it decided to break.
to stand in its dimly lit glory was a gift none of us truly treasured until the end. we watched our shows here, held fellowship in its halls, and banned together to huddle in the warmth of her bosom when many of us knew there was no where else to go -
or until we realised there was genuinely no where else we would rather be.
a place is only as sacred as the bodies that shape it. every employee that touched that sticky wooden bar or hauled those tables in and out of those double doors when she opened or at end of night transformed the aura that velo fellow had. to exist here was to be gifted the most amazing opportunity; the ability to shed the weight of the outside world and be made anew. the kindling for that kind of transformative power and acceptance exists solely because of the love it's stewards and patrons collectively fed it.
so, here's to velo.
the one that got away. a murmured song the wind carries to all of our ears. the place that made our hearts grow bigger and taught us that you're never too old to have fun. the place that gave voice to our pain and allowed respite from our self-imposed sanctions. the place that stood up for abused, and took no s**t in turn.
thank you for giving greenville life. thank you for giving greenville joy. thank you for allowing greenville to experience what it feels like to be accepted and feel the all encompassing passion of what it is to be LOVED.
we miss you, shawty.
🤝🤍
