Shelter Island Reporter editorial

Staying close to home
Family-run businesses are the backbone of the Shelter Island economy. And these businesses — some new, some decades old — are a huge part of what makes the Island such a unique place to live and visit.

Small-business owners also serve as defacto community leaders. They sit on boards of local nonprofits. They run for office. Above all, they get involved.

Their names, or those of their businesses, appear at Island events such as those connected to the Island Gift of Life Foundation or Thanksgiving weekend’s Turkey Plunge for the Friends of the Library, just to name two of many.

These businesses are found on programs and pamphlets for charitable events. When a local family faces a tragic circumstance, local business owners are usually the first to open their hearts and wallets. These are hard-working men and women of vision who truly help the Island thrive.

But they need your support as well.

In the pages of this newspaper and on our website, you’ll find dozens of ads from area businesses, some funny, some pretty, some just informative. They make it possible for our editorial staff to disseminate news and information day and night and to keep the community engaged.

Even if you are the most dedicated of newshounds, please take time also to notice what your friends and neighbors are offering through their print and online ads. What you’ll find is a wide range of products and services no big box store or mall could ever match.

What you won’t find is midnight madness, fights over doorbuster sales or, with some necessary exceptions, Thanksgiving or Christmas hours.

And isn’t that heartening? Here we can truly celebrate the season of light and hope.

We at the Reporter are challenging all our readers this holiday season to visit Island stores and pick up at least one gift from a small-business owner. Help your community stay strong by supporting those who show up every day to make life better for all of us.