We are our own disaster relief program

Sisters has had a tough year. A hard winter has been followed by a brutal fire season that cut summer short and choked up the local economy.

Smoky conditions ripped the heart right out of the busy summer season, which is when most of our local businesses put together the bankroll that gets them through the winter. The eclipse didn't pan out to be an economic boon; Labor Day was smoky and slow and the Sisters Folk Festival was cancelled due to air-quality concerns. Those are tough blows to take for local shops and restaurants.

There may be some programs to help out those hit hard by what can only be termed a slow-rolling economic disaster, but in all likelihood, Sisters is on its own.

And we can handle that. We can pull ourselves up by our bootstraps and be our own disaster-relief program. It doesn't have to be arduous, either. A little extra effort to dine out locally more frequently; a little extra sustained effort to shop local instead of buying online or at the box store will go a long way toward filling the hole left by the great summer smokeout.

Most shops in Sisters can order quickly what they don't have in stock, and Sisters is full of dining options for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Maybe this is a good opportunity to rediscover our hometown and keep our dollars at work in our own community, while reaching out a hand to help our neighbor.

Jim Cornelius

Editor