Two Sore Backs

In the summer of 2011, Marc Faubert was in North Vancouver to watch his daughter Justine play in the Canadian Little League Championships for team Quebec. He was sitting in the stands and overheard Brad Burgart talking golf. Brad was the General Manager of Capilano Golf and Country Club, where I recently retired from.

Marc is the majority owner and operator of Golf St-Anicet, a 36-hole daily fee operation south-west of Montreal, so he introduced himself and the two got to know each other.

They put together a plan where Marc’s son Alexandre would come to North Vancouver for a few weeks of the following summer, live with the Burgarts, work at a couple of North Shore courses, and practice his English. At the same time, Brad’s son Desi would stay with the Fauberts, work at their golf course, and practice his French.

Unfortunately, Desi wasn’t able to go, but, lucky for us, Brad remembered that our daughter Cara was in French immersion and he asked if she might be interested. Of course she was! Thanks again Brad!

Long story short, it was a great experience for Cara, and I think Alex had some fun too, so we reached out to Marc and Sylvie when planning this trip. The timing worked well, and what a welcome we got!

At Golf St-Anicet, everyone seems to know everyone, and everyone is in a good mood. It’s a testament to the energy that Marc, Sylvie, Sylvie’s twin sister Natalie, and Natalie’s husband Pat put into managing the operation. And the numbers speak for themselves – they did 476 rounds, a new record, on the day we left. Wow!

The course is super fun to play. Generous fairways mean you don’t have to leave the driver in the bag, and the green sites are interesting and challenging. Val and I had a great time playing with Marc and Alex.

Cara said that that living with the Fauberts was like a New Years Eve party, every day! We agree. We’re still recovering over a week later!