FAIR OAKS, CA (MPG) - Although the Fair Oaks community has grown and changed over the years, most long-time residents like Warren and Janet McWilliams will agree – it’s a great place to grow up and call home!

The beloved couple, who are affectionally known to many as Mr. and Mrs. Fair Oaks, spent their 65^th wedding anniversary last summer surrounded by friends and neighbors at a Concerts in the Park performance next to the church where they were married.

In January 2023, the Fair Oaks Chamber of Commerce presented the McWilliams with a Special Recognition Award reserved for deserving residents who serve as pillars in the community. The McWilliams’ list of accomplishments, as civic leaders and role model citizens, goes back decades.

A History of Community Service

The McWilliams have been members of the chamber for 28 years and have earned numerous accolades including the distinguished Citizen of the Year Award. In 1997, Warren ran for Fair Oaks Honorary Mayor and won—raising $6,659 for the Fair Oaks Theatre Festival.

They are both active in a number of long-standing organizations including the Fair Oaks Rotary Club and Inner Wheel, Fair Oaks Historical Society, Fair Oaks Theatre Festival, Woman’s Thursday Club of Fair Oaks, and the Fair Oaks Foundation for Leisure and the Arts.

Concerts in the Park 

Warren and Janet played a significant role in establishing the first summer concert series in 1995 for the Fair Oaks Centennial celebration. The couple were members of a small group who planned all the Centennial activities that year.

Janet recalled inviting the Sacramento Symphony out to perform in Fair Oaks Park for the Centennial’s final event. “It was challenging for us to raise money for the symphony to come out and play, but we managed to do it.”

In order to put on future concerts, the group realized they needed another way to raise funds.

They formed a non-profit called the Fair Oaks Foundation for Leisure and the Arts and – through the foundation – were able to help keep the music alive by selling ice cream at concerts. Some of the money they raised also went to park and amphitheater improvements. 

Concerts in the Park continues to be enjoyed today thanks to the foundation’s successful long-standing partnership with the Fair Oaks Chamber and Fair Oaks Recreation and Park District. 

A Budding Romance Blossoms

Long-time locals might remember Janet at Northridge Elementary School where she taught 4^th and 5^th grades from 1959 to 1972. Others may know Warren in the days when he worked at the Fair Oaks Post Office between 1958 and 1988.

The couple met in 1956 on a blind date to see a play at San Juan High School. Both had previously graduated from the school five years apart. Janet was in her second year at Cal State University, Sacramento studying to be a teacher and Warren had just finished serving four years in the Navy.

Things moved quickly between the two and they were engaged three months later. In 1957 they were married at the Fair Oaks Presbyterian Church.

After graduating from college, Janet was offered a job at Northridge Elementary School where she had completed her student teaching assignment.

She recalled the school had just opened at the height of Aerojet’s hiring boom. “The school district was growing one classroom a week. It really was quite a time. I think if you were breathing, they’d hire you to teach!”

After teaching at the elementary school for 13 years, Janet became a reading specialist for the district where she stayed another 20 years.

Warren worked for his dad for a while after he and Janet were married. When Janet became pregnant, he took a seasonal assignment at the Fair Oaks Post Office. The temp work paid off. Warren was soon asked to return where he stayed for 30 more years working his way up through the ranks from mail carrier to assistant post master.

“A Wonderful Place to Raise Children”

Warren and Janet’s son (Warren III) currently runs a dental practice in the area. He and his wife (Lynda) have a daughter (Shannon) and a 2-year-old granddaughter named Makenna.

Janet shared that Fair Oaks is a wonderful place to raise children. “The schools are good and the kids who grew up here return to visit with their own families. It’s always been a loving supportive community.”

Although businesses may come and go in the village, Warren thinks it still feels the way it did 45 years ago. “We’re like the Carmel of the North, but without all the fancy stuff,” he smiled. “We have some great restaurants, too!”

The McWilliams are proud of what they have accomplished in the community where they grew up, raised a family, and established lifelong friendships. Many of their friends recently came out to help celebrate Warren’s 90^th birthday at North Ridge Country Club.

What’s the secret to a happy 65-year marriage? Janet shared it’s about “staying focused on the positive things.”

Although both agree on the importance of having supportive friends, Warren left us with this treasured piece of advice, “I’ve always helped Janet with everyday things like doing the dishes and learned very early to say – yes!”