SE Twin Cities

As Sen. Eric Pratt warned that shutdowns due to the pandemic could cause a negative impact on businesses, local community members volunteered to donate supplies to area hospitals. 

In Minnesota, Gov. Tim Walz announced an extension to his stay-at-home order. The order will continue until May, which means many non-essential businesses and organizations will remain closed, a press release said. 

“Over the past month, our state has taken aggressive and unprecedented steps to confront this public health emergency. Minnesotans are sacrificing and suffering as we work together to beat the coronavirus – and we are now beginning to see the positive effects of our actions," Pratt said in the release. “While I do acknowledge the complexity of the situation, I remain deeply concerned about this shutdown’s continued negative effects on our economy."

While the shutdown may have negative effects on the state's economy, community members are stepping up to help out local hospitals by donating food and personal protective equipment (PPE), according to SouthernMinn. Owatonna Hospital and District One President Dave Albrecht said he has seen a vast amount of community support during the crisis. 

“At this point the community support has been just tremendous,” Albrecht told SoutherMinn. “It’s very important and very encouraging to our employees who are all going through a lot of emotional anxiety with this situation.”

Hospitals have been suffering just like every other business and are in short supply of essential PPE, according to SouthernMinn. 

But Pratt suggested that the economic shock many of these businesses, including hospitals, are facing can be lessened by keeping people employed, according to his press release. 

“As we approach the light at the end of this tunnel, surely there must be a way to balance the health of Minnesotans with beginning to bring our economy back online," Pratt said in the release. "One of the biggest assets of small businesses are their ability to adapt to changing demand."

Many small businesses in Minnesota are doing just that, adapting to the changing economy and helping the community out, according to SouthernMinn.

Bob Ayers, owner of FoamCraft Packaging in Owatonna, has partnered with several local businesses and altered his company to produce face masks for local hospitals, SouthernMinn reported. 

“It is always important to support our hospitals,” Ayers told SouthernMinn. “They’re kind of on an island right now, so anything we can do to keep up their morale and let them know that we are here for them we’re going to do.”

Pratt said being able to keep small businesses open in a safe way will help the economy and community. 

"Let’s recognize that flexibility and match it with our own innovative solutions," Pratt said in the release. "For example, rather than a blanket classification of ‘essential’ or ‘non-essential’, perhaps we might consider whether a business can safely operate instead – giving certain entities the freedom to reopen while maintaining social distance and following guidelines that protect employees and customers."