... And then Fast & French turned 25!
Thank you so much!
May 3rd 2009 WAS YOUR DAY. Nothing would have been accomplished
or would have had much meaning without your active participation, or your
presence, or your extended support.
We sent Jo Riley, the Mayor of Charleston, a formal letter of thanks for
his "Proclamation". In it we stressed that " ... twenty
five years for a very small business like Fast & French represent,
not only a lot of hard work from many generations of workers but also
the important support of a very faithful local clientele. Said support
was illustrated by the number of participants ... They all wanted to testify
to the necessity of dedicated, diverse, open-minded corner stores, to
anchor a community and consolidate the spirit of neighborhood". We
only hope that the mayor reads our letter and opens his mind to our plea
for Charleston to save itself from total gentrification.
We have a strong sense of what Fast & French brings to the city and
of the role the arts play in this. " Where there is art, there is
community - Where there is community there is art". That was included
in the Proclamation - under our dictation, of course. What we really want
is for this very spirit to outlast us. Moreover since, once again, you
made it all possible, can we count on you to help us brainstorm about
the future of Fast & French? Can we formalize a process by which such
brainstorming would be active, creative and constant?
Now the time has come to make our history, to cook up the metaphysical
soup - or is it the existential brew of our eternity!
For those who could not make it to the City Gallery at Waterfront Park
on May 3rd 2009, here is a quick synopsis of what took place that day:
- A 100' long three-dimensional timeline with memorabilia, pictures and
artifacts: 1983-2009
- A large pig and chicken set for pictures. You could ride them
- Music by the Hungry Monks, Gary Erwin & friends, The New Music Collective
and others
- Stories by customers, staff and friends
- A pig and Chicken contest: "Captions for the Future"
- A proclamation from the Mayor of Charleston
- A speech by Jean-Marie Mauclet
- 400 books given away, donated by Darryl Wellington
- Food, prepared and cooked by a multi-generational team of cafe staff
and wine served by Palmetto Distributors
- And a suggestion box for the future
Thank
you again. Help us keep the vision.
And
by OUR CUSTOMERS:
Fast and French 25th Anniversary
And look on FACEBOOK
Reviews on our 25th anniversary include the following ones:
Post and Courier:"Fast and French honors 25 years with impomptu celebration"
Charleston Citypaper: "G&M;s 25th anniversary is an opportunity to ask big questions"
Charleston Citypaper: "Celebrating a quarter century of French cuisine"
