06/07/2017
We have been overwhelmed by the response to our closing. Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts, to all of you that made sweet comments, sent messages, texts, and calls. This was the hardest decision we have ever had to make. We know in our hearts that it is the right one for us and our family, but what made it so difficult was all of you...our employees, our former employees, our "regulars", and all of the people that loved Big Rock. It was our second family. When the doors were open, we loved being there and getting to know all of you. We have so many wonderful memories that will always be dear to us.
To all of the people that were a part of the staff at some point...thank you, thank you, thank you. We had some rough times, but y'all always hung in there. I feel like I watched some of you grow up, watched your kids grow up, saw you finish degrees, have babies, get married, move away, find new relationships, go through breakups, deaths of loved ones, the list goes on and on. Man, we had some good times!! Laughs and jokes and crazy nights. Some of my favorite memories are our Christmas parties. Always laid back in true Big Rock style, but so much fun. We truly felt like a small family and I love you all. I am sure I will miss someone and I apologize if I do, it's late and it's been a long 8 years. James Thomason, Angie Mills, Brandon Hodgins, Autumn Parsons Spainhour, Poppa Deux, Adrian Robertson, Lea Barringer, Jenny Walser, Teresa Conrad, Julieann Baier, Lindsay Lopp, Lindsey Elyse Boshek, Matthew Beck, Brandon Beck, Lyndi Leonard, Serena Beck, Rob Allega, Adam Plyler, Ryan Hillard Short, Shane and Taylor Williams, Jason Berrier, Samantha Kelly Duncan, DJ Chilly. I know it will hit me later who I have forgotten, but all of you helped shape Big Rock into what it was and I thank you.
Who can forget some of the awesome live music we had over the years? A huge thank you to each and every band that played for us. There are a few that we had just recently had and I am sad that we didn't have the opportunity to have them a second time. If you get a chance to check out Michael Lewis or Jill Goodson somewhere, do it!! They were great! Of course, one of our all time favorites, Gruve Comlpex and Joel Mccarson, so many good times with those guys! Greg Williamson and the BBQ band, you were always one of our biggest fans and we thank you. The Lily Brothers, we were honored to be your first gig and will never forget the awesome shows. Brad Pruette, wish you the best of luck in all you do. Robert Trice Jr, thank you for the mellow Thursday's and hope life is treating you well. Ross Coppley, you put on some great shows for us and I hope you have found the success you deserve. We wish all of these bands and any others I may have missed continued success and thanks for the great memories.
Now, onto our customers. Many of you I know personally now. Some of you, we knew before Big Rock and your continued support and friendship means so much. We have customers that we lost too soon and will never forget them. We were so privileged to be a part of your lives. We watched love connections happen right at our bar, some of which ended in marriage and babies! We went through job losses, divorces, loss of loved ones, sickness, cancer, moves, weddings, babies, new homes, new jobs, and just day to day life with so many of you. We have watched some of your children grow up before our eyes! To the customers that were our "regulars", the ones that were there at least once a week or more, I don't even know how to say thank you enough. During those Sssllllloooowwww times, you kept things going. You may never know how much you impacted us, but we will never forget it. To those of you that were brave enough to bring your families to a "bar" to eat dinner, thank you for helping spread the word that it was an ok place to bring your kids! To our "prime real estate" people, as I like to call y'all...all of you that preferred to be in the far corner of the bar (really thought we might have some fights over that corner a couple of times! Hahahaha!) we will never forget the crazy conversations, the good times, the laughs, the stories, or your friendship. To EVERYONE that stepped through our doors, we thank you. We always hoped that every person had a good experience and that everybody felt like they were important to us, because they were. People said we were like the cheers of Lexington and that was the best compliment we could have gotten. Not just in the restaurant business, but in everyday life, everyone wants to feel like a VIP, to feel important, to feel liked, to feel like someone cares...we tried to do that to the best of our ability and y'all made it easy. A hello and a smile can make someone's day as we have found out through the years.
I know I am rambling and I apologize, there have been so many emotions over the last few days and they are pouring out now. I will leave y'all with some of my (Carrie) all time favorite memories and I would love to hear some of yours. Halloween parties, New Year's Eve parties, my 80's bday party, live music, Sean's 40th, the ice "sculptures" from the freezer, picking on Larry Walser, bartending with Cara, Jenny, Lea, Autumn, and of course Sean (even when he kicked me out from behind the bar...hey, it's hard working with your spouse all the time! 😜), music category for trivia every week with autumn and kicking butt a few times, the love and support during my Moms breast cancer, and going through pregnancies with the customers, even the ones that told me how huge I was, Sunday dinners with our tight circle of friends and all the kiddos, getting off early and sitting down with some of my faves to have a beer, watching Sean laugh with customers, watching Sean bartend on crazy busy nights...yes, to all our Charlotte peeps, he's still got it, watching our oldest zoom around the community table on her tricycle while we were working during the day (she gave nascar a run for its money!), and showing off our two babies that were born while we were there. There are so many more, but I will stop there. Thank you again for a wonderful 8 years and we hope that we stay a part of your memories like you all will be a part of ours.
