There’s a pretty impressive list of reasons in this edition of the Advertiser on why Wellington County and its environs are such a great place to live.
The Get in Touch for Hutch committee placed a thank you ad with us this week noting hundreds of people, organizations and businesses that contributed financially or through in-kind donations to help raise awareness for mental health issues and suicide awareness.
The committee made special note that the majority of their activities and events would not have been possible without the support of contributors. It’s a reminder to us all that many small acts add up to something big.
As we head into the Christmas season, the option to shop local is as important now as any time of year. Many small businesses describe this season as the time that makes or breaks their business. It’s a time when the merchant sees black or red on their bottom line at year end.
It may seem odd to tie shopping in with charity, but it is a circle of life of sorts, for small towns and communities across the country.
Successful local businesses support their community because they can. They can, often, because the community supports their business.
A number of years ago one of our old reporters used to haunt an Elora restaurant, now long defunct. He happened to make friends with the proprietor and maybe got to learn more about the business than he needed or wanted to.
Every season seemed to draw in new requests for charity. A free lunch for two, cash donations, items for silent auctions or the odd catering job without a profit were all good deeds offered by the restaurant owner. Often the request was met with a standard line: “helping us will be great for your business.”
There did come a time however, as the winds of recession blew through downtown, that he couldn’t help out anymore. On a particularly slow afternoon, a poor soul asked for a donation and ended with the soft close of “helping us will be great for your business.”
This put the requester on the receiving end of a diatribe chronicling the frustration many small businesses feel at one time or another.
According to the legend recounted many times over the years by our intrepid reporter, the owner responded in an exasperated tone, “what would be good for my business is if some of you people actually came back in and bought lunch or dinner!” It was not long after that encounter the operation ceased and the owner left town, never to serve a local lunch or donate again.
While the story has a sad ending, there is an enduring message.
The economic health of most communities depends on the health of small business and locally-operated stores. The urge to give back to a community that supports business is strongest when the owner is profitable and confident. Certainly the list of donors we noted earlier shows dozens of businesses willing to give back for a good cause. They do it because they can.
We encourage readers to support local business and keep our local economy strong. The allure of shopping for bargains elsewhere, even out of country or on-line, are tempting but those gains are short-lived.
The sad reality is, if the pendulum swings too far and too many opt for price and convenience over modest efforts to engage in the local economy, the ability of business people to support their community will be lost.
