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The key to a successful family business is having family members with a passion for the business and not just a feeling of entitlement. The business must be a life and not just a job. They must be visionary and continually willing to change and keep current with trends and industry changes.
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– Don McDougal, Grand Tradition
Courtesy photo
Kevin Durling is the shop manager. It is not only the Durling family who have persisted in employment, but the nursery foreman, Juan Garcia, has helped to manage the nursery for over 37 years. Juan’s son, Joel, is the field and loading dock supervisor, and Joel’s wife, Amber, is assistant office manager. Durling Nursery has been a family-run business since 1926 and even has a fifth generation waiting to serve – just give Robert’s granddaughter Callie Elder a few more years.
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Durling Nursery, Inc., a wholesale plant nursery, is located at 40401 De Luz Rd, Fallbrook. Their telephone number is (760) 728-9572. Grand Tradition – Three Generations The Grand Tradition Estate, founded in 1984, is a piece of paradise with not so secret gardens. Within the estate, a noble Victorian-style structure, the Beverly Mansion, is perched on a grassy hill and overlooks a serene lake. The Grand Tradition is a venue for special events, including weddings, receptions, anniversaries, birthdays, memorials and the list goes on. They offer public gardens, a public restaurant, The Veranda, as well as full service on-site catering. Everything done at the Grand Tradition is done in style. In 1984, Earl and Beverly McDougal, with partners Jack and Shirley Story and Dorin (Dode) and Muggins Martin, founded the business. However, the partnership was dissolved after two years. When the property was purchased there was a swamp in the middle of the land, but the McDougals didn’t see the swamp as a detriment, they just pushed forward and turned it into a magnificent lake. As a home economics teacher, Beverly was adept at cooking, and thus the idea of a food-related event business was born. The McDougals were so bent on perfection when building the mansion that the couple worked on pieces of the railings, molding and trim at night in their garage. Years later the McDougal’s son, Don, began work in the business, and now Don’s son, Mark is an integral part of the enterprise. Over the years, the Grand Tradition has served celebrities such as three San Diego Charger football players: LaDainian Tomlinson, Antonio Cromartie and Carlos Polk. Judge Lance Ito, O.J. Simpson Trial Judge, performed a wedding ceremony at the Grand Tradition and Congressman Darrell Issa’s son was married there. Among celebrities attending weddings at the venue have been Bill Walton and Rue McClanahan. In 2007, the Grand Tradition cancelled several weddings when the town of Fallbrook was evacuated due to a wildfire.
FAMILY OWNED AND OPERATED SINCE 1989 130
www.discoverfallbrook.com