A Dream Worth Living

Jerry West was born and raised in Franklin, NC. His father was a plumbing and utility contractor who often worked in the Highlands and Cashiers areas long before they looked as they do today. At around 11 or 12, Jerry picked up his own tool belt and started helping out. “We were doing plumbing work on the biggest houses I had ever seen in my life, you know, some of these neighborhoods seemed unreal,” says West. Work was plentiful, and each home and country club they mended added to his growing admiration for Highlands and Cashiers, especially the country clubs.

While they worked at these country clubs, Jerry West fell in love with golf and, eventually, the business of golf. He loved the look of the course, the contrast of fairways and hazards. “It was the landscape and the golf course architecture. All the things that differentiate the green. There is a cadence and symmetry to golf that drew me in. I just loved it,” says West.

But, “Everything just stopped in October,” says West. “There were a few things to do in the winter, a few restaurants that stayed open, but for all intents and purposes, the towns closed.” For years, this was the reality of the area's seasonal economy. West and his father would pack up their tools and go back home to Franklin for the winters, but for West, the itch to get back to the country clubs and golf courses did not fade with the season. It became his driving force.

When West entered high school, he worked at Highlands Country Club as a server to access the golf course and finally take his shot at this game. One can imagine that very first swing. The quick swoosh of the club slicing through the air, how the sound of the connection to the ball must have been intoxicating for a young man who had so long dreamed of getting his time on the tee box. West continued to work at the club and get in as many rounds as possible through high school and college.

As a political science major at Western Carolina, he initially thought he would be a lawyer who might take long lunches on a course. However, before graduating, he realized his passion for golf did not end at playing. He wanted to conquer the business of golf, too. “I had a friend who was a golf course superintendent at the Cullasaja Club, and I knew that’s what I wanted. So, I went and earned my degree in recreational grounds management in 1994,” says West, though he notes he started working professionally on the plateau in 1993.

In 1999, West found a job that would change his life and, in many ways, shape the future of the plateau. He was recruited to work at Highlands Cove, a gated community and golf course. In the mid-1990's, Art and Angela Williams acquired Old Edwards Inn in downtown Highlands and spent over 20 years successfully developing hotels, restaurants and upscale communities on the plateau. One of the developments they took on was Highlands Cove, rebranding it as an Old Edwards Club at Highlands Cove.

For Jerry West, the opportunity to work for Old Edwards Hospitality Group has been truly life-changing. Not only has he been able to work in the industry he loves, playing a huge role in the transformation and restoration of the Highlands Cove golf course, but he also met his wife and the love of his life while working for Old Edwards. “Hannah is the most wonderful person. She’s my security, my compass. She takes care of our family, and she’s absolutely the most wonderful mother.” says West. The Wests and their two children care for their 10-acre working farm, which has cut into his golf time, but he has no complaints.

When he is not chasing chickens with his kids, West continues to help shape the future for Old Edwards and the families that enjoy these mountains. Among his many achievements, the one he is most proud of is his involvement in the planning and implementation of GlenCove. He describes it as “the coolest, trendiest, most undoubtedly longstanding club model that the plateau, region, and possibly east coast has ever seen.” With an entertainment barn, billiards, bowling, a community garden, a recreational lake, and, of course, a unique 12-hole par-3 golf course designed by Beau Welling Design – GlenCove is what the Highlands-Cashiers Plateau was always meant to be, a multi-generational hub for families to grow together and make a lifetime of memories. To date, it is the pinnacle of West’s career. Still, anyone who knows him knows he is already envisioning what might come next.

Jerry West could have taken his passion and talents to larger markets, but that was not the dream. “There is no limit as to what our local golf clubs can do. And we love it here. We love the quaintness, the diversity, the lifestyle, and the arts. The plateau is home.”