I particularly enjoyed the segment on “ CBS Sunday Morning” last week about the survival of pubs in England, especially after the recent pandemic.
As noted in the segment, pubs are not just places to go to to get a drink but are gathering places for people who form long-term friendships with people whom they meet in pubs.
Pubs in England go back to the times of Chaucer and Shakespeare and have maintained their popularity despite the dawn of television and electronic media. But as described in the “Sunday Morning” segment, the recent pandemic took its toll on the number of people frequenting these revered establishments and has yet to recover with numbers held before the pandemic.
Pubs have not been as prevalent in this country as in England. But one might say that bars are equivalent to pubs and that might be close to the truth when we think about the popular television show “Cheers,” where the characters gather in a bar obviously more for the camaraderie than to just have a drink.
I think there are local establishments where people go to enjoy the company of others as much as to eat or drink and in one case to get their hair cut. A local barber shop I understand stays open after hours for a certain period of time just so people can drop by and enjoy each other’s company.
With churches experiencing a decline in membership and civic clubs also losing membership and the fact that extended families no longer live in close proximity as they did in past generations, there are fewer opportunities for people to meet and gather on a person to person level.
Thanks to Jeremy Gibson, the latest manager and also owner of the Holiday restaurant in Rockingham, this business which has run continuously since the mid-’50s has remained a place not only to eat but meet friends. Every day one can see the die-hard “regulars” at the bar area as well as in the booths and tables.
I personally have been going to the Holiday since I came to Rockingham back in the early ’70s and still enjoy going there to eat — even to eat by myself because I will always see someone I know at the Holiday, not to mention the pleasant staff I have gotten to know … home away from home.
Helen Cox is a former journalist and educator in Richmond County.
