Crowd turns out to celebrate Fairfield Golf & Country Club’s 130th anniversary

FAIRFIELD — The Fairfield Golf & Country Club was hopping on Saturday night as the club celebrated its 130th anniversary, and announced a new foundation designed to bring golf to more people, especially youth.

The club is the oldest west of the Mississippi River, having been started in 1892 by a Fairfield doctor named James Frederic Clarke. Since Clarke plotted his course near Crow Creek, Clarke decided to name the club after it, but he used the Native American name for the creek, Kahgahgee. Now, 130 years later, members of the Fairfield Golf & Country Club have started the Kahgahgee Historical Golf Foundation, which will make capital improvements to preserve the historic course, and provide golf programming, with a focus on young golfers.

Lori Schaefer-Weaton is president of the club’s board of directors, and said her father-in-law Jim Weaton put a lot of research into the club’s history, and helped get this foundation off the ground. Schaefer-Weaton will be an ex officio member of the newly created foundation board, whose members are Chuck Espy (chair), Tim Kuiken, Jim Horras, Martha Rasmussen and Nate Weaton.

Schaefer-Weaton said she joined the club’s board of directors because she believed the Fairfield Golf & Country Club is a “huge asset in a small community — one that needs strong leadership to compete in today’s world.”

“The club is where we go in town to hang out with friends and family — whether at the pool, on the course, or for a dinner out,” Schaefer-Weaton said. “It is also about the only place in Fairfield where we can hold business meetings and take business associates out for a nice dinner. I grew up at the club, so it also holds decades of good memories for me and I want to see other families become part of that legacy.”

Schaefer-Weaton said the club has undergone a number of improvements lately, including a remodeled kitchen, new dining room chairs, and new patio and pool furniture.

“As we speak, the parking lot is being refreshed, including the lot adjacent to the cart shed,” she said. “This will be a huge improvement to the look and functionality of the club.”

When asked what has allowed the club to thrive for 130 years without interruption, Schaefer-Weaton said it has been the commitment of club members. She said they give their time, talent and money to support the club.

“I also think today we have the best staff in town — from our club manager to the pool lifeguards to the chefs and the servers,” she said. “It really is all about the people. The club also offers the rare combination of golf, dining, and pool experience, a valuable proposition that is rare to find in a small town.”

Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com