Having a job is a way for people to make money. My last job was that and so much more.

Prior to working my college job, I had only ever worked for my dad’s lifeguarding company or babysat. So coming into the serving world was a whole new experience.

I first got my job from a friend who I had played lacrosse with at Georgia Southern. She knew I was looking for a job and told me to come in and apply because she knew I would get along great with all of the people who worked there.

I was hired and immediately fell in love with the staff. Everybody was fun and laid back and enjoyed the work they did. I started making new friends within days of my first shift.

As the months went on, our main restaurant and our smaller location combined and with this brought new employees. At first, it felt as if our little family had been invaded by strangers but soon they became family, too.

As time moved on, I started to face my own personal struggles. I was going through issues with my roommates, I was having troubles in school and none of my relationships were panning out how I wanted. Looking back, I now realize I was struggling with depression and other issues. These issues led to me taking a semester off of school and overall just making poor decisions.

Through all of this, I had my work family to turn to for help. Being four hours away from my own family made my work family even more important. They might not have known it at the time but my work family helped me get through a very tough time in my life.

My work family was there to talk to not only during my shifts but also the best people to turn to when I needed to go out for a drink or just needed someone to vent to. And even though we didn’t always see eye to eye, we were always there for one another.

Through new employees, poor ownership and difficult customers, we all continued to love and support each other. We were there when big things happened, like graduations and new job opportunities. We supported each others’ dreams and life goals. We helped each other through deaths and breakups. And if you were ever looking for a good time you could always find at least one of us to go out with.

As my work family grew, we started moving away, from graduations to jobs overseas we began to grow apart but never at heart. I never told them how much they meant to me through those tough months but now that our restaurant no longer exists, I would give anything to be back together with that great big, dysfunctional family eating a burger and taking Vegas bombs. Some of the best times I had were sitting on “our” side of the bar, hanging out with the staff and all our favorite regulars.

A work family is just as important as a real family. Without my work family, I would have never made it to where I am today.