Focus on Manatee | We each have a role to play in fighting COVID-19 pandemic

As we set our sights on August, it is difficult to comprehend how much has changed over the past several months. As the world grapples to fully reign in a global pandemic, individual and local efforts at reducing spread and caring for those in need continue to highlight that we each can make a difference.

There has never been a time when collaboration and partnership between the public and private sectors has been more critical. Relationships nurtured prior to this crisis have been so valuable as upheaval touches the personal and work lives of almost everyone. It has been incredibly uplifting to see so many people come together and bring the best of what they have to offer.

Businesses will drive our economic recovery. Tenacity, innovation, resiliency, and stewardship are great descriptors for what business leaders and their workforce bring to the strategies that will lift us out of this crisis.

Equally important are attributes like kindness, patience, generosity, flexibility, and understanding. I have seen these working in powerful ways throughout our community. As I speak with business people on a daily basis, the details of their challenges and those of their diverse workforces and neighborhoods, are very different. In their stories, however, I find a common commitment to overall improvements, recoveryand success.

Our local businesses are applying a laser focus on health and safety guidelines to protect their employees and customers while following official guidelines. They need a similar determination from consumers to ensure a successful, sustained economic recovery dependent upon improved health outcomes. Our businesses need your patronage and I urge you to follow CDC and Florida Department of Health guidelines, as well as local ordinances, as you give your support and “think local.”

I am proud that the Manatee Chamber has been able to assist so many businesses and their employees as we fulfill our mission. From a series of recorded webinars focused on the mental health of our workforce to the free hyper-local www.JobFocus.com job posting/search tool, from the #ManateeStrong Facebook group and www.RecoverManatee.com website to virtual roundtables with key community leaders, we continue to make connections to accurate information and needed resources.

We are also offering at least four networking opportunities each month to help business people connect to one another. If there are ways the Chamber can help you and your business, please reach out to us. Sometimes a friendly voice on the other end of the line is the best place to start.

We are proud to be a partner with many other organizations and agencies to navigate our recovery together with focus, determination and compassion.

Jacki Dezelski is president and CEO of the Manatee Chamber of Commerce..