Americans are not a people who quit.

We beat the more powerful and better equipped British military in our first fight for freedom as one during the Revolutionary War.

We reasserted our desire to be united as one following the Civil War, during which many families were destroyed both by differing ideologies from within and by enemy soldiers on the battlefields.

Now, we find ourselves challenged by another enemy - coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

In response to this highly contagious and devastating disease, the world shut down.

President Donald Trump, his Coronavirus Task Force and governors across the United States, in an effort to slow down the spread of the virus, put guidelines in place that effectively closed most businesses, except those deemed “essential.”

Due to mandated social distancing, many businesses, such as restaurants, may only serve food via takeout, delivery or curbside pickup. Other businesses offer online shopping only.

Churches have closed their doors, with some offering online or drive-in services.

Schools are closed. Commencement ceremonies are up in the air. Some mothers and fathers have lost their jobs. And families, ordered to stay at home, are learning the true meaning of togetherness.

In the wake of these orders, many mom-and-pop businesses have closed. Others are desperately struggling to survive until the rules change and they can open their doors fully once again.

Now is the time to show the true American spirit.

All of us need to come to the aid of our neighbors, those who own small, community businesses, the backbone of the American economy.

If you can afford it, put on your face mask, grab your hand sanitizer, get out of the house and go shopping locally.

Before driving to any business, call, email or check the company’s website or Facebook page first for information on days open, hours of operation and any special rules.

If we do not support the local, family-owned businesses in our communities now, they won’t be there for us down the road when the COVID-19 pandemic is just a memory.

Deb Palmieri

editor

Parkland Press

Northwestern Press