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Health & Fitness

The 30-Day Challenge: Shop Local

Only in Oswego, a new blog to promote shopping local in our hometown.

Let me introduce myself and this blog. My name is Tia and I am part of the new Tourism Bureau for the Village of Oswego.

I say “new” because the Village has recently taken on the task of promoting tourism and we are less than six weeks old! My job is to promote the businesses that make Oswego a great place to work and live and to also make it a sought after destination for culture and entertainment. I grew up 15 miles from Oswego and left after college to pursue work in New York City.

I lived there for over 5 years before I decided to go back to school to pursue my master’s degree. I’ve lived in a few major cities, Chicago, New York, London and always considered myself a city girl but found that there was something so impersonal to it all and I was always searching for “home."

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After graduate school, I made the decision to return to the area and ended up discovering the lovely Village of Oswego which I have happily called home for over two years.

Previous to my employment with the Village of Oswego, I was the track photographer for Arlington Park and Hawthorne Race Course where I was responsible for promoting the tracks in print and web-based media. I used to travel 90 miles round trip to my job every day which led me to utilize the resources nearest to me while I was out and about and not the great resources in my own back yard.

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There is so much that I have not been able to take advantage of in the past and now is the time to do it. This is why I have started this blog and is why I am creating a 30-day challenge for myself. This challenge is to shop local and only local with an emphasis on small businesses in Oswego. I plan on only spending locally for recreation and entertainment as well. 

The blog will highlight local businesses and include my experiences about my purchases. Every week I will explore new possibilities in shopping local and what the benefits can be.

Why shop locally you ask? According to bestlocalnews.com, it can create more jobs: Small local businesses are the largest employer nationally and in our community, provide more jobs for residents. It provides better service: Local businesses often hire people who understand the best-selling products.

Investing in Community: Local businesses are owned by people who live in this community and are less likely to leave, and are invested for the future of our community. It can also mean contributing less to sprawl, congestion and loss of habitats and pollution.

With a few local businesses closing their doors recently, it’s more important than ever to shop local. Put the money back into the community and help Oswego thrive!

Apart from the two days I will be enjoying myself (as a spectator and not a photographer for once!) at the Breeder’s Cup at Churchill Downs in Kentucky, I am looking forward to the challenge!

By the way, my plan was to start the 30-day challenge today, but my first act of shopping local began last night as two students from Traughber Junior High came by selling magazines. Since it was to raise funds for extracurricular activities I made sure to purchase two magazines.

The purchase felt good as it was right in line with my blogging agenda. If you have any great local tips let me know I would be happy to explore them. I know there’s a lot I have yet to discover in my own backyard and these blogs will be the chance to discover all that’s waiting. Stay tuned! Let’s grow together - shop local!

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