After a challenging Thanksgiving week where we all were asked to remain distant from our family and friends I would like to personally thank everyone who took that request seriously and changed their family gathering plans to help manage the pandemic.
Some shared with me that they decided to stay home rather than travel, others shared their plans to eat outside in a safe environment (it helped that the weather was excellent), and still others had found new and creative ways to spend time in a safe manner with family. The choice to alter plans during this pandemic was not easy. Many people only get to see family a couple of times a year and they were being asked to consider missing that opportunity. Your thoughtfulness, ingenuity and selflessness did not go unnoticed, and I am deeply grateful for the choices so many made this past week to ensure we had a safe and healthy holiday.
Looking forward, I am unsure of what statewide decisions will be made for Hannukah, Christmas, New Year’s and Kwanzaa. I know people are starting to make their plans (if they have not already) and are looking for guidance on how best to plan their next holiday. I can only recommend that the conditions of this pandemic are not, currently, on a trajectory that would suggest large group gatherings indoors would be a good idea. As of Nov. 24, the county’s 14-day average positivity rate sat at around 8%, nearly double what it was only four weeks ago. Locally in Lansdale, the 14-day average is even higher at 10.57% according to the County Dashboard. For that reason, it is very likely that we will need more of that creativity and ingenuity to last through the remaining year.
That being said, part of this process needs to be investing in the businesses that help make our community one of the most desirable places to live. With the holiday season coming and more people buying presents please consider buying many of your gifts from local shops, stores and restaurants. Local businesses have been hit particularly hard during the pandemic and they need your support to continue to survive this challenging time. Many businesses have changed their hours of operations, altered their in-person experience and followed the state guidelines knowing that these changes would negatively impact their bottom line. But they chose to do so because they value the long-term investment in the health of Lansdale and the people who live, work and play here. So, this holiday season, I am asking you to invest in them as much as you can. Show them how much you value their dedication to our community and the passion they have shown for maintaining the safety and well-being of Lansdale.
We are one united front in this pandemic, and we must be looking out for one another as this emergency continues to evolve and change over time. Undoubtedly, this holiday season will be one of the most challenging for many different reasons for many different families. If you can, take time to reach out (in a safe, socially distant, way) to your neighbors and make sure they are “ok.” We are all struggling in some way, sometimes it just takes a small conversation or a nice gesture to help pull someone out of the doldrums the pandemic has created for so many. I maintain the faith that together we will see better days ahead and together we will come out of this more united than we were before.
(Mayoral Musings is a weekly op-ed column submitted to North Penn Now, courtesy of Lansdale Borough Mayor Garry Herbert.)
See also:
Mayoral Musings: Wishing All A Safe And Happy Thanksgiving
Mayoral Musings: Operation Package Protectors
Mayoral Musings: Moving Forward Together
Mayoral Musings: Tomorrow Is Election Day
Mayoral Musings: A Few Tricks To Maximize Treats This Halloween
