Small Business Saturday

Support your locally owned stores this holiday season! By Jocelyn Stott

Psst! Christmas, my fellow Americans, is right around the corner! The frenzy starts before the turkey’s cold - we’re thinking about which big box store we’re going to stake out for the best deals on Black Friday. Or will we wait for the online specials on Cyber Monday?

Here’s a thought – how about neither?

In the event you’re ready to jump off the hamster-wheel that the Christmas holidays have become, here are few suggestions that keep you in the spirit of giving without turning you into a total Scrooge:

Why not give Small Business Saturday a go? November 29 is officially the day around the country where local shoppers are encouraged to support local small businesses for their holiday shopping. When you buy jewelry or a bike from the local store, you help support your neighbors and the local economy instead of sending the buck on to a massive company somewhere else.

While you’re shopping local, consider also looking for fair trade products. By choosing fair trade products you’ll be getting things that have been made from natural products and/or sold in a sustainable way by a farmer or craftsperson who will get a good price for his/her work instead of a big corporation. Examples of fair trade goods can be cotton, wood, wool, coffee, chocolate or certain types of jewelry. Ideas: FairTradeUSA.org or GlobalExchange.org

Toys for Tots – There are plenty of holiday gift giving programs like Toys for Tots where you can purchase a toy or a coat for a child in need right in your own community. You might find you come away feeling richer. Ideas: ToysforTots.org

For the one on your list who already has everything, give them water or a goat. Water is so basic and so many in the world don’t have access to it. Make a donation in someone’s name to help give the gift of water – or food. You can give a goat! This one is great because it’s fun to tell your brother you got him a goat for Christmas. And the look on your sister-in-law’s face when you tell her she’s getting a chicken? Priceless. But seriously, for a family that relies on the basics like the milk of a goat or the wool of a sheep, that’s a pretty great gift. And you get the joy of providing a new opportunity for someone who really does need it. Ideas: CharityWater.org or Heifer.org

Peace on Earth, goodwill toward all – that’s what the Holidays are truly about.

#shopping #local