11/ 30/ 2007
by Lena Basha
Meet three small-business owners who double as community activists
Observers may marvel that full-time business owners like Joplin, Mo.'s Nancy Good can find the time to dedicate to their community, but to her, giving back is just another part of business as usual.
By volunteering their time, resources and expertise, Good and the other small-business owners in this story are finding that giving back yields countless rewards for them--and their businesses.
Talk to a few people in Jackson, Tenn., about Gary Deaton, and you'll quickly find out that the lifelong resident plays many different roles in his town. Homeowners know him as the owner of Deaton's Carpet One, which he opened in 1974. Voters know him as a county commissioner as well as the chairman of the Madison County Republican Party. But perhaps most importantly, the residents and workers at The Care Center, an emergency shelter for battered women and children near downtown Jackson, know him as the generous philanthropist who opened the shelter in 1982 because he saw a need that was not being met in the community.
These impressive num-bers don't surprise Mary Leavitt, owner of Columbus, Ohio-based The Flag Lady's Flag Store.
"Talk to any small-business owner and they'll tell you a beautiful story of how they got to where they are today--and small-business owners don't take that for granted," she says.
Leavitt, who started selling flags out of the trunk of her car in 1980, recalls many people who helped her throughout her life, from a high-school teacher who taught her shorthand to an employer who helped fine-tune her grammar skills, to the business adviser she met the day she decided she wanted to run her own business. In fact, she keeps a list of their names by her desk at work and on her refrigerator at home so she'll never forget them.
"They pulled up beside me when they didn't have to, and they helped me succeed. That's how I view my community work," says Leavitt, whose service achievements include promoting patriotism and helping veterans. "It's an opportunity for me to get involved in somebody else's dreams and aspirations."
In addition to founding the privately funded women's shelter, Gary Deaton also sponsors local sports teams for kids and seniors and organizes an annual charity golf tournament. The fact that his community helped make him the successful businessman he is today is what drives Deaton to give back. He started Deaton's Carpet One with a mere $450 investment--just enough to buy a couple of carpet rolls. Today, Deaton employs 19 workers, and boasts retail sales of almost $3 million annually.
"Being a small-business owner allows me to do many things," he says. "I consider it a blessing to be able to give back because so many things have come my way."
In a big corporation with workers and customers spread out across the nation, it's hard to pinpoint the community it serves. The opposite is true of a small business steeped in its community's history and culture. Take, for example, The Title Place in Joplin, Mo. The company opened its doors in 1903 to support the development of southwest Missouri at the turn of the century, and that's something owner Nancy Good says she never forgets.
"The community is the lifeblood of why we are in business," says Good, whose business now has five offices across the region. "It is the community that supports business by opening doors to new customers. It would not be fair for our company only to take; it is our responsibility to give back, too."
Good is involved in many charitable projects in Joplin. She serves on several nonprofit boards, including the Wildcat Glades Audubon and Nature Center, which, with Good's help on the steering committee, opened its doors earlier this year. She's also involved with the Community Support Services of Southwest Missouri, an organization benefiting programs for the developmentally disabled, and the United Way of Southwest Missouri. Her latest effort has been raising funds for a state-of-the-art school for children with autism.
Good isn't the only one at her office giving back; she also gives her employees the opportunity to volunteer during work hours. Despite the investment, Good isn't focused on how it affects her business.
"I just want to leave this world with a feeling that we have made a difference in someone's life," Good says.
Small-business owners don't--and shouldn't--expect anything in return for their community stewardship. But, as Deaton says, "to say there's not a benefit would be naive. Everything you do in life has a positive or a negative effect.
So the more things you do for the right reasons, the more positive results you'll see."
These results can include publicity, new customers and an expanded network of potential experts for your business. "Be involved to learn what your community has to offer," Good says. "You might learn something that will help make your business a better place to work, or you might find a new source for something you need. Being involved in my community has always paid back tenfold what I have been able to give."
And don't worry about needing to spread the word about your good deeds. "If you do the right thing, the publicity will happen," Good says.
Giving Back
A 2004 NFIB Research Foundation survey found that 91 percent of small-business owners give back to their communities each year through volunteering, in-kind contributions and/or direct cash donations.
The average value of their annual contributions totals roughly $40 billion.
Do Good Now
The holiday season is here, which means there's no easier time to get involved in the community. Have a big deadline before the end of the year? Then make community service one of your New Year's business resolutions. To help you get started, here are some simple community-service projects that you can implement today.
- * Collect food, toiletries, clothes or toys within your company and donate them to a local nonprofit organization.
- Adopt an angel from the Salvation Army's angel trees program and purchase presents for a child in need. Learn more at www.salvationarmyusa.org.
- Participate in a sponsored walk or run that raises money for a charitable cause. Encourage everyone in your office to participate. Even those who don't want to walk or run can cheer for the team.
- Volunteer at a food bank. The holiday season brings an influx of food to the nation's food banks. Give employees an extra hour at the beginning or end of the day to sort and box food collected at a local food bank. Consider encouraging customers or employees to donate food items, too.
NFIB.com
For more ways to volunteer in your community, click on "Other Benefits" in the "HR" section of www.NFIB.com/toolsandtips.
