It’s rare to find a student who doesn’t see the weekend as an opportunity to blow off steam after a rigorous week of schoolwork.

In Chapel Hill, some look to Franklin Street to cut loose. Its sometimes boisterous bars and rowdy nightlife make it the perfect outlet for those who unwind by revving up.

Nearby, on Carrboro’s Main Street, is a place that offers a different atmosphere for those who seek a more laid-back social environment. This place is Orange County Social Club, a Carrboro staple that celebrates its 10th anniversary this month.

The music is loud enough to enjoy but quiet enough to hear yourself think over. Seating options include a stool along the curvy bar, a standard chair at a table or a spot on the warmly lit back patio.

Tricia Mesigian opened the bar in 2001 after wanting a place for her and her friends to hang out, especially earlier in the evening.

“Local and national and globally — be it pop culture or politics — I wanted it to be a place where there wasn’t a live band in your ear, and there wasn’t this thing or that event,” Mesigian said.

“We come in here and we know what’s happening. Unless there’s a basketball game, pretty much you’re not interfered with. You can sit down with your friends and talk about what you met to talk about.”

Tracy Swain came on board just a few months after the bar’s opening, first holding a door position before becoming a bartender.

In her nine and a half years behind the bar, she has seen OCSC grow to include more students.

“I think it has enriched the community where people can come when they get off work and get a drink on their way home. Also, students who want to go out and young professionals who want to come out as well will come out on the weekends,” she said.

Local graphic artist Ron Liberti has been tied to OCSC since it was just an idea. In fact, he helped Mesigian come up with the name.

He designed OCSC’s logos, and his screenprinted posters and other artwork can be found all around the bar. Liberti credited the bar’s long-term success to the level of comfort it offers its customers.

“I think all of us assumed that it was going to be here for a long time, because it kind of had that feeling at first, too,” he said.

“It was cozy, and you’d think, ‘How long has this place been here?’ even in the beginning.”

At the same time, Mesigian and Swain both attributed much of its success to it being a family affair of sorts.

“The majority of us, we all knew one another before the establishment opening. We were already good friends, and Trish just kind of kept it in the family when she was thinking of people to hire,” Swain said.

“I think it has also kind of made our friendship a little stronger, and people see that.”

While “family-oriented” might not be the first adjective that jumps to mind to describe a bar aimed at twenty- and thirty-somethings, it’s OCSC’s unorthodox family that has kept it going for the past 10 years.

Mesigian compared running the bar to being in a band: She knows she has a support system that is well-aware of what it’s doing and always has her back.

“It is a family-run operation, even though it’s a different kind of effed-up family,” Mesigian said. “It’s mind-blowing, the amount of support that people give day to day.”

The idea of a family operation has spilled over to this weekend’s celebrations at Cat’s Cradle. Over two nights, the venue will host nine bands, almost all of whom have close connections with Mesigian and OCSC.

“There’s only one band that isn’t a friend, but they’re quickly becoming friends,” Mesigian said. “It’s kind of a love bug event of friends.”

This weekend’s event concludes nearly a week of events held at OCSC, most of which have been acoustic, low-key performances by local musicians held in the bar or its parking lot. Friday and Saturday nights are strictly reserved for rock ‘n’ roll.

Mesigian said that she enjoys being a hostess, but the party she wanted couldn’t happen at OCSC due to its small size.

“I just love music,” Mesigian said. “I love celebrating and I love parties. I love throwing parties.”

The party celebrates more than the bar’s survival. It’s about the community behind it, from the musicians whose tunes fill the jukebox to the regulars who swing by every Saturday night.

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