This is an important time in our society to help each other out, while still taking care of ourselves.

With the COVID-19 pandemic still on the upswing, everyone is being encouraged to stay home . . . but it does not end there.

“Staying home” means to minimize time in public and removing yourself from group settings . . . it does not mean (at least not fully, yet) to not leave your home at all for any circumstances. Even under a full lock down, grocery stores and pharmacies would still be open.

Now more than ever is the time to use common sense. Keep your distance from others when you are out, minimize your time being out, and keep up the clean habits (like washing your hands regularly with soap and water for at least thirty seconds, changing your clothes as soon as you enter your home, and keeping cleaning wipes on hand to wipe down your phone, hands and steering wheel after running errands and pumping gas).

While pretty much all restaurants have closed their dining rooms and adapted take out or delivery options only, we can still support our local businesses. If you can afford to, and you are healthy, go get take out or order delivery from local restaurants and still tip as you would if you were dining in. If you can afford to tip more, please do tip more. Servers rely on tips for their main source of income rather than their base hourly pay.

If you are not interested in ordering takeout or delivery at this time, then buy gift cards / gift certificates online from these locations to be used at a later date.

As for local businesses not in the food industry, support them by shopping online. Look at their websites and order items online, or (again) buy gift cards / gift certificates now to use at a later time.

When you go to the grocery store or out to run necessary errands, have your game plan in place (as much as you can . . . we get that more often than not the items on your grocery list right now may not be available and you have to call an audible) to help minimize your time out at locations that are not your work or home.

Now is the time, more than ever, to not be selfish. If we stand together now to do our part, this is something that may be over in a matter of months rather than years.

You can take that vacation another time. There will likely be a Spring Break next year . . . but what about those soon-to-be newlyweds who had to cancel their wedding celebration with friends and family because it’s the best thing to do for those they care about and our society . . . what about those who are selflessly cancelling funeral arrangements to minimize people being together in groups of more than 10, and in turn miss that valuable piece of closure to say goodbye to their loved one that a funeral service truly helps with . . . and don’t forget about the first-time parents-to-be who should be experiencing the joy of a baby shower spent with loved ones to welcome a first child into the world, but are cancelling because of the health and safety not only of the pregnant mother, but society as a whole.

For the record, we are not scientists/doctors/researchers and do not claim to know when this will be over or how long it will last . . . but when you look at this in terms of “comparatively speaking,” a few months is a short amount of time rather than talking in longer terms like years.

As for agreeing with the need to limit going places and interacting with many other people, Jai’s thoughts are this . . . “While contracting the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 may not be a death sentence for you, it could be for someone else. It’s easy for someone to think, ‘well, if I’m sick, I just won’t spend time at a nursing home . . .’ but, think about this as a domino effect — one of our coworker’s kid’s get the virus because they went on spring break and hung out in large groups of people, and had no idea they were even contaminated with it. No symptoms at all. Now, it’s in our coworker’s household, and our coworker unknowingly brings the virus to work and infects a couple other people without realizing. Before we know it, I (someone who has underlying health conditions and am currently pregnant) get it and, again without realizing it because symptoms haven’t started to show, give it to Fletch since we work closely each morning. Fletch doesn’t realize he’s come in contact with someone who has it and goes to see his mom who lives in a nursing community.”

Fletch’s thoughts on listening to the government and medical personnel in their efforts to flatten the curve are . . . “I can’t believe I need to even preface this by saying I am a staunch conservative in every aspect of my life, but this is something that is bigger than just me . . .  so yeah, I’m willing to curb my lifestyle to help during this time.  I do not want the government telling me what to do. I think wed pay way too much in taxes and my wife and I have several guns. I think I’ve hit all the buttons that will paint the picture on the type of person I am, but this COVID-19 pandemic has the potential to do a lot of harm to a large segment of our society. It blows my mind that our grandparents had a love for our country and were willing to sacrifice in a time of need. Well, this is a need, and I pray if you fall into the camp of ‘I’m young, I’m good,’ evaluate your life and see if it’s all about you.”

Now is the time to stand together by standing apart. We can stay home while supporting local businesses and helping our neighbors and loved ones.

https://twitter.com/gregggonsalves/status/1238065930904707072

You can learn more information on what businesses are open and how you can support local HERE; and keep up with all the news and info regarding the COVID-19 pandemic HERE.

We value your thoughts, comments and concerns on the COVID-19 pandemic and, whether you agree or disagree with our opinions, would love to hear from you. Call us any morning, Monday-Friday 5 – 9 AM – 877.999.9887.

https://twitter.com/NeilDiamond/status/1241584423927074818