Businesses need your help during outbreak

Some years back, in the biggest town in a small county outside our 9th District, there was a clothing store. Upstairs was the office of the area's weekly newspaper. Week after week, year after year, the clothing store published the same advertisement in the newspaper, displaying its name, address and a drawing of a coat rack, to signal what people could buy there. No brand names, no sale prices, nothing else.

The message this ad sent was clear and reassuring: "We're still here."

It's a complete understatement to say the fallout from the coronavirus has already been hard on the private sector in Washington. Although many large businesses may have enough in reserve to survive a financial downturn and pay their workers, the same can't be said of the family-run Main Street businesses that are the backbone of our communities. Restaurants, salons, bowling lanes, fitness centers, theaters, and more – now joined by "non-essential" businesses forced to close for an unknown amount of time by the governor's "Stay Home, Stay Healthy" order.

The message I and my fellow Senate Republicans are getting from these employers is clear: "We're still here...but we don't know how long we can last."

Government is promising assistance, but, the surest help for the small businesses in our communities will come from communities themselves.

If you're used to having lunch at the cafe on Friday, see if you can order take-out or delivery. Can you buy a gift card or certificate from a local business? Order merchandise that can be picked up or delivered?

I realize teleworking doesn't work for some businesses, while others are unable to convert even temporarily to a takeout/delivery business model. For businesses that remain open, anything you can do to keep their cash registers ringing gives them a better chance at survival.

If you run a business and want to tell your customers you're still here, buy an ad in the online edition or the print edition of the local newspaper, or a spot on the local radio station, and let folks know how to do business with you during this time. Community media organizations not only provide readers and listeners with information that no big-city outfit can; they're part of the local business community, too.

Those of us working in agricultural sometimes have to remind others (which can mean fellow legislators) that food doesn't come from the supermarket, but from farmers, growers and producers.

If the small businesses that are a cornerstone of the private sector are to regain their strength, the time to give them our business is now.

Think of it as an investment in our communities and our quality of life. These businesses have been there for us time and time again; let's be there for them.

- Sen. Mark Schoesler, R-Ritzville, represents Adams County as part of the 9th Legislative Distrct. Email him at Mark.Schoesler@leg.wa.gov.