02/12/2023
I’m normally a very quiet person that chooses prayer before argument but I can’t stay silent through this one, especially as a business owner. The current owners of Biggby-Alma have been wonderful, supportive customers of my business for many years. They are great people with huge hearts that in the past have handed my husband a little extra money to take me to lunch. Seems someone knows what it’s like being a husband-wife/business partner team. Owning a small business isn’t in the least bit easy, ever really. To an onlooker it may seem like life is simple, money comes effortlessly, employees are doing all the work, & business owners just have it made. The truth is, a lot of responsibility comes with business ownership & success doesn’t happen without dedication. We have so many rules, laws, & policies to follow with many eyes watching our every move. There are perks to owning a business though & one of them is we can choose who we service, who we hire, who we terminate, who we sponsor, & who we support. The recent uprising that has occurred with Biggby Alma & St. Louis makes me feel so disappointed in my community. Maybe the owners were rude in how they presented themselves, maybe they weren’t. We weren’t present for this in-person discussion that occurred. Frankly, Biggby Alma doesn’t have to give a reason to make a change or put a temporary hold on a program. As an adult, I would’ve been satisfied when asked if there was an issue and the owner replied with a no & went on to express that they just don’t want to participate anymore. That’s a good time to shake hands and say thank you for all the support given in the past. If this upsets you and you want to switch to Starbucks, you have that right to do so in this beautiful, free country of ours. Maybe they’re afraid of insurance being an issue, maybe it was a cowardly excuse to hide real, true reasons to end the relationship with the program. Maybe they’re mentally exhausted by their new business venture, maybe they’re nervous about finances, maybe their anxiety has them making irrational decisions & coming across as rude. I know you’ve seen this saying. It’s a meme, it’s on t-shirts, it’s posted everywhere, “Everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about. Be kind. Always.” Or how about my favorite one, “In a world where you can be anything, BE KIND.”
Our county has suffered too many major, tragic losses already this year. Two significant young lives were lost to su***de. Exactly a week after celebrating the life of our most recent loss, I see two generous people being slandered all over social media. Hundreds of you changed your Facebook profile pictures to display a banner that reads, “Together for mental health.” and yet I witness adults bullying. I’m saddened to think about all the kids & teens that are too young to be on social media right now reading what their parents are saying about other adults. Forget the business ownership at this point. The owners of Biggby Alma & St. Louis are humans. Your words hurt. I know this first hand. I’ll never forget when my business was called ‘Powder Crap of Central Michigan’ on social media. They might as well have attacked me personally, it hurt just the same. The Fitzgeralds are feeling quite a mix of toxic emotions right now. They’re likely feeling like failures at this point when they’ve done so much good for our community in the past. Our society has become so quick to judge & so slow to forgive. Can we please remember the good that has been done? I’ve taken screen shots from their page since the Fitzgeralds became the owners of Biggby Alma. Look at just a snippet of the wonderful ways they’ve contributed & given back. Both parties involved in this situation are incredible & make our community, our county, a better place. It is my hope that those precious students are encouraged to write &/or draw ‘thank you’ pictures to Biggby Alma for all the support in the past. God set up this lesson of forgiveness for all of us this week. Let’s all participate. Let’s just love & be kind. Let’s come !
Praying many prayers,
~Julie Moon~
