SHOPPING: Local is best way to go

All around our area you will find towns that are home to independent businesses or restaurants. We are the places you go when you want to feel at home.

We are also the places that shape your definition of your community. Where you will find the owner most days, where people know your name and are genuinely glad to see you. We are the places that make your town special to you and to the outside world. As consumers, you have the power to shape your city.

You are helping us support local causes such as schools, churches and charities. Like us, you are seeing that there is more than monetary value to your purchases; there is community value. Ask someone to name their favorite shop or cafe and chances are it's an independent business. Yet we often forget these local places rely on your patronage to survive. Our town is not just a target market to us - it is our home, and we have a personal vested interest in the long-term health of our community.

Our downtown has made huge strides over the years to become a special place to those who live and visit here. In our current economic condition we are at risk of losing them. We need you to be here for us this holiday season so that we can be here for you in the future. If you didn't already know it, your local independent businesses think you are special and realize the value you bring to us. We want to be there for you and our community.

This holiday season, look at your Christmas lists and make a decision to purchase at least part of that list at an independent locally owned business. If you are shopping for a special gift, hostess gift or office/staff gifts talk to a locally owned merchant. Ask us to help you pick the gifts that will make you feel special just giving them. Let the people on your list know that you went to your favorite shop with just them in mind. And don't forget to get a little something for yourself!

ILENE MOSS

Coeur d'Alene