Rural Missouri - December 2020 - 4

R M | C O O P E R AT I O N

Shop local

Support your neighbors this
Christmas season

nless you are one of those frequent shoppers
who buys Christmas gifts year-round, you
are probably fast approaching panic time for
holiday gift giving. If that's the case, consider shopping local to support those small businesses
owned by your friends and neighbors.
" With the holiday season approaching, supporting local businesses is more important than ever, "
says Missouri Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe, who heads Buy
Missouri, a program that promotes made-in-Missouri
products. " When we shop small, we are supporting
our friends, families and communities. "
You can log on to www.buymissouri.net and search
for Missouri-made items by county or by business
type. For example, a search for toys turned up three
businesses, including Warrensburg's Three Trees
Workshop (www.threetreesworkshop.com), which
makes wooden games and toys. When you buy from
owners Nathan and Cynthia Epps, you not only support their business, you also support the local businesses where they source their wood.
A recent addition to the Buy Missouri program
is retail partners, businesses that sell at least five
Missouri-made products. Shopping at one of these
retailers - such as Maw Maw's Cupboard in Warrenton (www.mawmawscupboard.com) and The Outpost
in Freeburg (www.facebook.com/outpostfreeburg) -
offers access to locally made goods.
If artwork is your thing, check out the 400-plus
juried artists who are part of the Missouri Artisans
Association's Best of Missouri Hands. Included on its
website at www.bestofmissourihands.org are artists
who work in a wide variety of mediums and create
works at the highest level. Included artists such as
Texas County's Lanie Frick, described as " an artist
who paints her subjects of horses and wildlife with
spirit, life and light, " to Linda Sutterer from Marthasville who uses recycled glass panels in her work.
When it comes to artists, don't forget Missouri's
home-grown musicians. Gift a CD or downloads
from local talent such as The Creek Rocks (www.
thecreekrocks.com), folk artists Blackberry Winter
(yarnspinner-media.square.site) or the " Critter Rock "
of Wildheart's Jan Syrigos (www.wildheartmusic.com).
Perhaps you see food as the perfect gift. Consider a
gift box from one of the many AgriMissouri producers
listed at www.AgriMissouri.com such as kolaches or
cinnamon rolls from the Hayes Family Farm Bakery
in Halfway (www.hayesfamilyfarmandbakery.com)
or a juicy Steak Bundle from the Stedem Family's
Pasture to Plate Co. (www.pasturetoplateco.com) in

RURAL MISSOURI | DECEMBER 2020

photo courtesy Pat McCarty, Washington Forge

What gift could be better than one made by the hands of your
neighbors, like this hand-forged leaf from Best of Missouri Hands
member Washington Forge (www.facebook.com/washingtonforge)?
Now, more than ever, shopping local can make a huge difference.
Chillicothe. Or go all out and ship tasty treats from
Burgers' Smokehouse (www.smokehouse.com) or
Swiss Meats (www.swissmeats.com).
Coffee lovers will appreciate a bag of the finest
beans lovingly roasted at a Missouri coffee shop.
Chances are you will find one at your nearest downtown, but here's a few of our favorites: KeenBean Coffee Roasters in Mount Vernon (www.keenbeancoffee.
com), Arcadia Valley Roasting Co. in Ironton (www.
arcadiavalleyroastingcompany.com) and the newly opened Reconstruction Coffee Co. in Villa Ridge
(www.reconstructioncoffee.com).
Your coffee lover will need a grinder too, so check
out the selection of these and other Missouri-made
home goods at Red Rooster Trading Co. in Baring,
(www.redroostertradingcompany.com).
Maybe the person on your gift list would rather
someone else did the cooking. In that case a gift certificate from one of Missouri's many fine-dining establishments would do the trick. Many of these places
struggled to stay open during the COVID-19 shutdown. Your gift would help them keep the doors open
and checks coming to employees.
You can find dozens of rural eateries featured in
our pages on the Rural Missouri YouTube page at
www.youtube.com/RuralMOmag.
Another idea is a weekend getaway at a Missouri
B&B. You can find many unique places to stay at
www.bbim.org or if you can't make up your mind, buy
a gift card on the website. Package your gift card with
a bottle of Missouri wine. You can find a huge selection of wineries at www.missouriwine.org.
Taking a little time to shop local might just be the
best gift ever.

http://www.buymissouri.net http://www.facebook.com/washingtonforge http://www.threetreesworkshop.com http://www.smokehouse.com http://www.swissmeats.com http://www.keenbeancoffee.arcadiavalleyroastingcompany.com http://www.mawmawscupboard.com http://www.arcadiavalleyroastingcompany.com http://www.facebook.com/outpostfreeburg http://www.keenbeancoffee.arcadiavalleyroastingcompany.com http://www.reconstructioncoffee.com http://www.bestofmissourihands.org http://www.redroostertradingcompany.com http://www.thecreekrocks.com http://www.thecreekrocks.com http://youtube.com/RuralMOmag http://www.wildheartmusic.com http://www.bbim.org http://www.AgriMissouri.com http://www.hayesfamilyfarmandbakery.com http://www.missouriwine.org http://www.pasturetoplateco.com

Rural Missouri - December 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Rural Missouri - December 2020