NFIB

Main Street Pitches In
03/ 27/ 2002

By Lisa Waddle

Events of recent weeks have revived the "give back" spirit among many Americans. For Main Street business owners, though, the show of generosity and patriotism is nothing new--it's something they're a part of, year-in and year-out.

Community service is not disaster-driven for small business owners. It's part of their identity. Surveys have shown that business owners are more likely to contribute to charities than other households, according to the Chronicle of Philanthropy. And trends show giving back is not only becoming more popular, it's expected by both customers and employees.

Check out our cover story, where dozens of small business owners share their stories of giving back to the community. Most are long-running programs, although we've included a sidebar on the activities of small business owners tied to the tragic events of Sept. 11. We hope you'll find some new ideas on ways to help needy causes, which ultimately ends up helping your business.

And now, a little horn tooting...MyBusiness won several regional and national awards recently, for both design and editorial content:

From the American Society of Business Publication Editors, MyBusiness received a national award for the May/June 2000 Editor's Letter. We also took regional awards for this column, as well as in the category of "New Publication" for 2000 and for the cover photo from the September/October 2000 "Grow a Winning Team" issue.

In the Awards for Publication Excellence, or APEX, contest, MyBusiness won for overall magazine for our January/February 2001 issue and overall writing for the March/April 2000 issue.

These awards reflect the hard work of everyone listed down the left-hand side of this page. And they're made possible by the readers and advertisers who have supported MyBusiness in its first two years. We thank you and ask for your help in continuing to cover the world of the small business owner. Tell us your stories, thoughts and challenges in running your business. You can write me at the address at left, or e-mail me at lwaddle@mybusinessmag.com.

---

This article originally appeared in the November/December 2001 issue of MyBusiness Magazine, NFIB's member magazine.

Small Business Sound Off
Does this story hit home?  Share your story with us