For those who claim no rivalry exists between the towns of Holly Springs and Fuquay-Varina, stop lying. Anyone who’s been in Southern Wake for more than five minutes knows that Holly Springs is the Eagleton to Fuquay’s Pawnee (Parks and Recreation reference — look it up, I’m not pandering to your ignorance).
Every small town needs an enemy town next door. Raleigh has Durham, Cary has Apex, and Fuquay has Holly Springs. We shop there; they drink here. They whine about us visiting their neighborhoods on Halloween, and we complain about their traffic mug handles, dramatic Facebook pages, and general snootiness. We basically live in each other’s backyards, but we all act like this is an East vs. West Coast scenario. NO UNDERSTANDING CAN BE REACHED. THE WALL MUST BE BUILT.
Oh, you want proof? Every day I receive memes like the one pictured to the right in my inbox.
Credit: Chris Edge
Is FVM responsible for this enmity? NOPE. This rivalry existed long before I arrived. Do I fan the flames for entertainment purposes? Obviously — I need something to write about, and you love every minute of it.
It’s important to remember that not every resident of Holly Springs can be painted with the same brush. There’s full-on Karens, low-key Karens, 12 Oaks residents, and people with a Holly Springs address but the heart of a redneck (everyone who lives around Cass Holt and Rouse Roads).
According to longtime area natives, Holly Springs used to be a pit of despair and a major danger zone, but the minute the town got a Target, the fancy pants went on, and the residents haven’t taken them off since (and when I say “fancy pants,” I mean Dockers Classic Fit Signature Stretch Khakis).
Calm down, Holly Springs citizens. Fuquay is on the same path to self-righteousness. With every new neighborhood and business that pops up, we’re fast becoming a pain in Angier’s you-know-what (this is a family magazine — give me a break). Before you know it, we’ll all be avoiding Walmart, wearing Costa sunglasses like we live near a beach, and complaining about cheap wine. We all know the Fuquay Walmart is a living nightmare, but I’ve got to get my omeprazole somewhere.
The biggest elephant in the room between Fuquay and Holly Springs? The schools. Keep in mind, HSHS and FVHS are less than six miles apart, and half of these kids attended the same middle school. When a child is threatened with rezoning, parents in Holly Springs start busting out WCPSS voodoo dolls and burning sage. They spent at least $800K on their house to avoid being zoned to a Fuquay school, after all, even though the quality of education is top notch in both towns.
Despite the facts, HS parents seem to think students at Fuquay High can only ace the menu at Cookout (this may or may not be true). But the beef goes both ways — the Holly Springs Golden Hawks are called the Holly Springs Dump Chickens. Fuquay students still chase off Holly Springs kids like it’s a rumble straight out of West Side Story.
BUT TIMES ARE CHANGING. Fuquay-Varina now has a second high school (Willow Spring) that exclusively belongs to all of two neighborhoods. Fuquay-Varina High got itself a shiny new building where kids can learn good. These students are no longer risking their lives at the Broad Street crosswalk for a gas station burrito; they’re driving out of their fancy new parking lot and getting lattes at Cultivate.
The lines between the two towns are blurring, people. The youth are showing us the way (until football season, then all bets are off). While the origin of this rivalry remains unknown, so does the point of this article. But hey, someone had to air the dirty laundry — you can always count on me.
