June, 2020
Grapevine Chamber of Commerce Newsletter
Business Matters Mission: The mission of the Grapevine Chamber of Commerce is to promote business that adds value to our community.
Vision: The vision of the Grapevine Chamber is a progressive business organization that brings relevant and essential opportunities for our investors and community to grow and prosper.
Values:
Excellence Innovation Integrity & Community
We All Need Some Fresh Air
Before I sat down to compose this month's newsletter, I read an amusing article about phrases that people absolutely never wanted to hear again after the inauspicious beginning to 2020: ’flatteningthe curve,’ ‘social distancing,’ ‘new normal,’ ‘unprecedented,’ ‘we’re all in this together,’ to name a few. While I concur with the author that these phrases have by now become tiresome, I am filled with a sense of gratitude and well being as we begin the process of venturing out again into our day to day lives and activities. I notice that I am thankful for simple things that, frankly, I had taken for granted in the past…. face-to-face gatherings with friends and family; visiting loved ones in the hospital or nursing home; bellying up to the bar at our favorite watering holes and restaurants; the joy of watching our children’s sporting events; watching our children graduate from high school (in person, not from the parking lot); grocery shelves stocked with toilet paper and paper products (who knew we would ever be coveting those?).
As I have expressed in my past couple of newsletters, as Chair of your Grapevine Chamber of Commerce, I am proud of our community spirit and how we have banded together as citizens of Grapevine to support our local businesses and non-profits. One of the activities that I have missed is just the simple activity of walking into a shop on Main Street and perusing down the aisles looking for myself or a gift for a friend. Who knew that we would go for months on end with the doors shuttered and those business owners desperately trying to find ways to pay their staff or rent. Now is most definitely the time to get
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off of the computers, get some fresh air and visit a store in our community. These are the same people we go to when we look for donations for our kids' sports, or an auction item for our social service fund raising. Now is the time for us to continue to shop local as we get back to normal (notice I didn’t say the ‘new normal?’) Shopping local, whether in-person with or without a mask or online, keeps your hardearned money in Grapevine. The strength of the
local economy is largely driven by your hometown stores and restaurants. Their success is reflected in the City’s sales tax, which pays for first responders, parks, streets and other city services. The strength of the sales tax has helped Grapevine achieve the second lowest property tax compared to all cities in Texas with populations under 50,000. Please do not hesitate to call me or my assistant, Mr. Big, if we can be of service to you. (Mr. Big is ready for his Mama to go back to the office so he can get some rest!) Or, while you are out and about, run by the Chamber office to say hi to RaDonna and your chamber staff and thank them for working through this entire pandemic to share information, support and masks! And finally, thanks to all of you for what you have been doing to help us get through this challenge and help those around us be even better on the other side!
LeAnn Brown,
Board Chair
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