Press Release from GRTS

GRTS Student Plans Small Business Event
By Angie Talken
CT 11 20 19

In celebration of the 10th annual Small Business Saturday, two Grand River Technical School students teamed up with Main Street Chillicothe to spread awareness of the event and importance of shopping local along with offering a free grab and go style breakfast for shoppers on the morning of Nov. 30 - Small Business Saturday.

Tamera Tropf, a senior at Braymer C-4 and a student of the Hospitality and Tourism Management
Program at the Grand River Technical School, along with fellow GRTS student Drew Minnis, who is a senior at Chillicothe High School, approached Main Street Chillicothe staff with an idea on how to enhance Small Business Saturday in downtown Chillicothe. "As an FCCLA member, I am working on an Event Management Competition directed toward a Small Business Saturday Promotional Event," Tropf said. "In recognition of the 10th Annual Small Business Saturday, Main Street Chillicothe will hold a Shop Hop on Nov. 30 - breakfast will be held at 8:30 a.m. in Silver Moon Plaza for the community. Following the breakfast, passports will be handed out to shoppers to get signed at local businesses. The Shop Hop will be from 9 a.m. until 12 p.m. At noon, everyone will gather back at Silver Moon Plaza where a raffle containing items from local businesses will be held. It is a "No-Purchase-Necessary-Event" with a goal of getting customers into the doors of local businesses and learning what they have to offer." Tropf said about 13 downtown businesses signed up to participate in the event.

A second-year member of FCCLA, Tropf came up with this idea during class at GRTS, and it has since become an idea and project she plans to take to an FCCLA competition. "During a brainstorming assignment in my Hospitality and Tourism Class, we were given the challenge of making a difference in or promoting our community. It was through this that I came up with the idea of a Shop Small Business Relay to help promote local businesses on that day," Troph said. "Through our interactions with Main Street and assisting with Small Business Saturday last fall, it helped to influence and build upon my idea. With Mrs. Shaffer's encouragement, I reached out to Ben White, the (former) executive director of Main Street Chillicothe."

Troph will be taking her idea to FCCLA Regional competition in January. According to the competition guidelines, she must help organize, volunteer her time, demonstrate good time management, and then present to a team of judges. Last year, she gave an illustrated talk during the competition. "I will be competing against other juniors and seniors. If I receive a Silver or Gold in the FCCLA Regional competition, I will qualify to go to the state competition in the Spring. Each of my classmates are also preparing for their own competitive events," she said.

The breakfast will feature coffee, hot chocolate, donuts and bagels and will begin at 8:30 a.m., Nov. 30, in Silver Moon Plaza.