Now that Thanksgiving dinner has been eaten and 'Black Friday' has passed, I wanted to take the opportunity to remind you to buy local as much as possible this holiday season.
Sure, Amazon is easy and Wal-Mart is cheap - but at what cost is cheap and easy worth it? The reality is that if we want to have locally-owned restaurants and stores - the traditional "mom and pop" businesses - they need our support now more than ever.
Why does it matter? Because small local businesses are the heartbeat of our community. They create local jobs, they re-invest the money back into our town, and they offer personalized customer service you don't find at the big-box chains. They're run by your family members, neighbors, and friends from church.
I can't say I don't ever use Amazon or go to a big box store, but I can say I try, and I'm going to try even harder this holiday season....but not because it's cheap or easy - because it's worth it. Our community is worth it.