The last eight months have been for the books, no two ways about it. But while there’s been enough stress, anxiety, and upset to tide us all over 'til 2025 (no breath being held over here), this year has also done wonders in the way of sowing a lot of good from humanity—and, in particular, from this community of ours. Whatever your denominations, affiliations, or general feeling about the state of things—and whatever “Thanksgiving” means to you—here are a few of the things we’re thankful for this Thursday:
ESSENTIAL WORKERS: COVID-19 has thrown the mother of all sticks into the spokes of the world this year, and we’re eternally grateful for those who are serving on the frontlines of this pandemic. Our healthcare workers—not just at the University of Utah, but all over the state—have taken the brunt of stress, exposure risk, and overtime. It’s a common sentiment going around, but it bears repeating: this is a skill set that cannot be manufactured, so we feel it’s in all of our best interests to—in “use it or lose it” fashion—appreciate, applaud, respect, and compensate these folks to the extent they deserve (see: wear a mask!). To that end, we think a similar thanks is due to our grocery employees, servers, postal workers, delivery drivers, gas station attendants, and other folks who keep this chaotic world turning by showing up every day. We see you and we humbly thank you all.
LOCAL EATERIES + BARS: With mixing and mingling being nixed for the majority of 2020, our local food and nightlife scenes have been suffering substantially under COVID regulations and practices. A few of our faves have shuttered their fronts, and for that we’re heartbroken, but we applaud so many of our city's eateries for weathering this storm and getting creative with takeout, delivery, spaced-out seating and more. (Check out our regularly updated takeout list for ways to support your favorite spots from home! And call your Senators to demand that the places we love get the assistance they need to survive!)
QUARAN-PRENEURS: Apart from the many herald-worthy innovations so many of our favorite restaurants have adopted in order to stay operational, we applaud the many SLC residents who have taken this quarantine to refine their baking/mixing/cooking skills and venture out on their own. We’ve noted a few of the spots that have cropped up during quarantine on our Takeout List (many of them only operating through Instagram orders and offering delivery), but we’re thrilled that this time of crisis has ignited some delicious creativity in our town—now, let's help keep them going post-COVID!).
OUR SALTY COMMUNITY: When we needed it most, our fantastic community hustled together and created fantastic groups like @covid19mutualaidSLC and Local Propagandists and initiatives like Shop for Your Neighbor, fundraisers, and multi-business giveaways centered around giving Salt Lakers in need a leg up and keeping local businesses in business. Beyond that, we’ve seen an outpouring of civic engagement (one that’s been much needed in these parts for quite some time), and we’re so proud of each and every Utahan that’s stepped up to call, write, march, and otherwise hold our representatives accountable. Salt Lake may still be a work in progress in many ways, but our citizens' abilities to rally together to keep one another afloat continues to amaze us by any standards.
a few ways to give BACK:
2020 Utah Refugee Connection Holiday Drive
