It promotes shopping local on a national scale by celebrating products Made in America and drawing attention to issues from college dorm rooms to gifts and clothing to an entire house of made in America products.

View the interactive map of Made in America companies, find products produced in the United States or download this product list.

The Winning Essays

Sarah’s essay said:
Why it’s important to shop local
…it creates jobs for people in our area. I volunteer at My Father’s House, a community shelter and I know that those people there wish there were more jobs for them close to home. There are so many other people in our area that need work and by shopping local we can provide a way for them to support their families.

Colin’s essay said:
Why it’s important to shop local
..is because when you shop at my friend Herman’s store you are giving them money and that is what feeds his family. When you buy something at the store that cash turns into money that takes care of them. Herman’s store is just a few blocks from my house and I walk there to buy all my ice creams from his store.

Sarah & Colin, thank you for entering the contest and understanding the importance of shopping local!

Thanks

A great big thank you to our prize donors:

• 40 Silk Bucks from Silk Espresso
• 4 certificates for appetizer or dessert from Red Robin
• 2 gift certificates for a hair cut from Nails on First
• 2 large pizzas from Bronx Eatery
• $10 gift certificate from Lillian’s Market
• $25 gift certificate from Craft Warehouse
• 2 $65 gift certificates from Mt Hood Lanes
• 2 Ink cartridge certificates from Cartridge World
• 5 $20 gift certificates from Laze Planet
• $25 gift certificate from Elegantly Funky
• 8 movie passes from Mt Hood Theater
• 2 certificates for admission to 10 plus game tokens from Wunderland
• Cell phone auto mount from John the Wireless Guy
• 8 admission tickets from Skate World
• 2 $12 gift certificates from Bella Cupcake
• 2 One year subscriptions to the Outlook
• Set of 5 Tails of Abbygail DVD & Poster from Terry Hanson Link

Don’t forget to shop local this Holiday season!

My “10 Ways To Local”

1. Changed my business focus to one where I now strive to get local business owners and non-profits maximum visibility in the community, save them money and help them get more profitable.
2. Became a Gresham Chamber of Commerce member.
3. Became a member of a Gresham ITakeTheLead professionals networking group.
4. Joined the TryLocalFirst meetings.
5. Changed my dentist from one on 72nd & Division to Sue Monnes, Gresham Chamber member.
6. Changed my health products from Whole Foods near 40th & Sandy to Lillian’s in Gresham.
7. Changed my auto, home and life insurance from a Farmer’s agent in Milwaukie to Lori Stegmann and John Sage, Gresham Chamber members.
8. Though my change was from one local to another local…it was from a non-Chamber member to a Chamber member: Brian at Cartridge World on Eastman Pkwy.
9. Changed my church attendance and offerings from a Mall 205 area church to Easthill.
10. And, I refer others to local businesses rather than out-of-Gresham businesses or online ones.

I do so love our Gresham. Makes you feel good to be a part of such a great community. We have so much here. I encourage others to really think about where they are spending their money, and consider if it is helping their community or one elsewhere. Let’s all do what we can to spend here, not there. And, think of your own “10 Ways To Local”. You’ll be glad you did, and so will others you affect by your decision.

No guilt-trip intended, but even though it’s convenient at times…when you are out of Gresham and around other areas of the Portland-Vancouver metro area…to buy gas, groceries, coffee, cards and other things…buy local because it’s the right thing to do to support our local economy. Our decisions and habits do make a difference!

To a more prosperous year and years to come,
Steve Copeland
Copeland Business Services
Gresham, OR

The June 16th Third Thursday will feature a beer tasting in the courtyard of the newly opened “The Hoppy Brewer”, accompanied by acoustical Jazz/R&B trio “Matt Kirk & Friends”. “The Hoppy Brewer” is located at 328 N. Main Avenue in historic downtown Gresham.

The Historic Downtown Gresham Business Association is seeking artisans for Third Thursdays. For further information, visit the Historic Downtown Gresham website or call (503) 665-5990.

CONTACT: Kerry Ann O’Halloran
(503) 661-8000 ext. 101

Giving Back

The first thing Kim did with her winning check of $1,000 was to make a donation that will provide 600 pounds of food for local families. That is just one of the great things that happen when you Try Local First local charities are supported in the most part by local businesses so when you buy local chances are you are helping to support local non-profits and charities.

Kim knows about that on the other side also as her husband, Michael is an owner of a small business in downtown Gresham and his business Sole Position Internet Marketing is always one to step-up and help local causes! Congratulations! Kim we know you are having a great time this Holiday Season shopping in East County.

Just like the last two years, Try Local First is proud to announce that our $1000 shopping spree is open for submissions.

Don’t Delay. Enter Today!

Simply visit our contest page, and fill out the entry found there, and you’ll be entered. You can enter once a day.

The contest goes from October 24th, 2010 through December 3rd, 2010.

Awesome Sponsors

We have a great group of sponsors, without whom we wouldn’t be able to put this contest on. Please visit their websites below and shop local!

• Silk Espresso
• Oregonian’s Credit Union
• Riverview Community Bank
• Advanced Care Chiropractic
• C.P. Trips
• AccuShred NW / Gresham Sanitary
• Portland Adventist Elementary School
• Lori Stegmann Insurance Agency Inc
• Courtyard Fountains
• Gresham Downtown Development Association

We care a great deal about our local economy and want it to prosper in good times and bad.

That is why we are giving away an East County Stimulus. It’s our very own stimulus package for East Multnomah County.

Entering is Easy

Simply visit Enter to Win page and either fill our our online entry form or download our paper entry form, and you’ll be entered. You can enter once a day.

It’s that easy!

Spread the Word

Help spread the word about our contest by sharing this post with your family and friends, so they too can learn more about TryLocalFirst.org.

The contest runs from June 15th – July 25th.

We feel the positive energy of people shopping local and taking care of those less fortunate in our community. The Try Local First slogan You Have the Power is truer now than ever.

During this holiday season consider the power you have to make a difference in our community. Local business are far more likely to help our schools, our sports teams, our soup kitchens, our homeless shelters than a business located online or out of state.

If local businesses are successful, a portion of their tax dollars come directly back to our community. So embrace your power and make this shopping season one of blessings for all in in our community.

The walk will begin at 1:30 p.m. with a group discussion at Café Delirium, a local independent coffee shop in Gresham’s historic downtown. He will meet with members of Gresham’s Try Local First campaign to discuss the importance of making local purchasing decisions to help the local economy.

At approximately 2:15 p.m., Bemis and representatives from Try Local First will visit five local merchants to discuss how their businesses are doing and to talk about how the City might be of assistance to them.

In these difficult market conditions, Bemis hopes to draw attention to the importance of thinking locally when making purchasing decisions, and continue his efforts to promote business friendly policies at City Hall.

Mayor Bemis holds Neighborhood Walks quarterly, and uses them as opportunities to connect and learn about issues going on in Gresham. City Councilor Carol Nielsen-Hood, who is also the Executive Director of the Gresham Chamber of Commerce, will join Bemis for the visits.

Walk Itinerary (times are approximate):

1:30 p.m.
Café Delirium
308 N Main, Gresham, OR 97030
Meet with representatives from Gresham Try Local First Campaign and business owner Cody Clark.

2:15 p.m.
Cynthia’s Floral
312 N Main, Gresham, OR 97030
Meet with store owner, Cynthia Loaffler.

3:00 p.m.
Elegantly Funky
101 N Main, Gresham, OR 97030
Meet with store owner, Kerry Parmenter.

3:45 p.m.
Dick’s Sporting Goods (Gresham Town Fair)
700 NW Eastman Parkway, Gresham, OR 97030
Meet with General Manager Rich Rhames.

4:30 p.m.
Borders (http://www.greshamstation.com)
687 NW 12Street, Gresham, OR 97030
Meet with General Manager Julie Nelson.

What’s so important about this idea of using local merchants, suppliers and contractors? What difference does it really make whether you buy your new (fill in the blank) from an East County merchant, a Portland department store or online for that matter?

Is there any way to measure the impact of an individual decision to acquire goods or services locally? The answer is emphatically yes.

One local business made a commitment to hire a local design team and a local general contractor to expand its Gresham senior housing community. The direct economic impact within the community has been phenomenal. Ask the Gresham-based general contractor, PDG Construction Services, or any one of roughly 20 local material suppliers, vendors and specialty contractors who are benefiting from this owner’s decision and commitment.

Or, ask any one of the 260 construction workers, many of them living in East County, who will be employed during the 15-month expansion. Ask Axis Design and Engineering, the local design firm that spent a year in planning, designing and permitting the project.

Mary Beisley, administrator for Courtyard Fountains, explained her company’s philosophy behind the decision to hire local professionals to design and construct its Phase III mixed occupancy facility.

The project contains 44 assisted living units, 15 luxury independent senior apartments, a secured parking garage, commercial kitchen and dining facility, offices and common areas for residents.

The structure is 77,300 square feet and the cost of construction is approximately $11 million.

The owner and Beisley were adamant about using local companies because they knew local firms would take a greater personal interest in the quality of design, execution and final quality of the facility. Gresham is a relatively small community, so local contractors and trades people are committed to performing at the highest level.

Being involved in Courtyard Fountains is a great opportunity for many local firms and each of them want to have a successful outcome to promote their businesses. Further, this local business-to-business commitment has created strong ambassadors among the contractor’s team for the Courtyard Fountains’ future occupancy. It’s a win-win in every direction.

From a practical standpoint, most observers would understand and agree with this assessment. However, is there a real metric that can be looked at to measure the economic impact to the local economy, when a “buy local first” commitment is made?

The Center for Strategic Economic Research is a Sacramento-based consortium that has done specific research into this question. These researchers analyzed the economic impact on a regional economy from various types of construction projects. Courtyard Fountains neatly fits into a health care and institutional building category. The findings are revealing.

Every $1 million of construction supports 11.7 total jobs; 6.8 direct jobs plus another 4.9 jobs through indirect and induced activities. Also, each $1 million of construction cost creates an additional $770,300 of additional economic output through indirect and induced activities.

Direct impacts are the initial, immediate economic activities (jobs and income) generated by the project that correspond with the first round of spending in the economy. Indirect impacts are the production, employment and income changes occurring in other businesses in the community that supply inputs to the project and/or industry.

Induced impacts are the effects of spending by the households in the local economy as a result of new jobs created by the facility.

Beisley — the Courtyard Fountains administrator — estimates that the new staff positions required for operation will create 50 new jobs.

According to this sophisticated economic analysis model, Courtyard Fountains’ commitment to “buy local first” will have an overall economic input to the East County regional economy of almost $20 million.

That really matters, especially in light of the current economic conditions.

It makes a difference every time anyone makes the commitment to buy from local merchants, suppliers, contractors and service providers.

And, the talent and resources are locally available to accomplish almost anything. Ask your local chamber of commerce or check its Web sites for help in finding resources.

Brian Lessler is president of PDG Construction Services in Gresham and also is 2009 president for the East Metro Economic Alliance.