I stopped by one of my fave-spots, The Flying Fish Bar and Grill on Wilmington Island near Savannah. It was late in their day, and things were winding down. I chatted up River, the bartender and owner's daughter, and started tucking into a big plate of shrimp and fries.
Happy Pleasure...
As time passed, the kids working the store began to do their closing calculations. Three or four of them found a table to work at and laid out all of their order tickets from the night's work. Then they sorted out all the money and began figuring what was their's to keep and what was headed for the till.
I was struck by the fact that these kids were learning very important life-skills courtesy of this little eatery on Wilmington. Dozens of kids have worked there over the ten years or so that I have been going, including the kids of many of my friends. They learn discipline, the value of hard work (and a dollar), how to get along with others, and how to be a good follower (and leader). In short, a job like this prepares a kid to do more than hang out on mom and dad's couch and fail to launch. While some youngsters spend the weekend focusing on a video screen, the kids at the Fish were earning and learning and having fun working.
Yet another benefit of having a Pub in your neighborhood. May the Fish ever Fly...
