The goal is to create more jobs in Culpeper

Hot dogs, lemonade, apple pie, vanilla ice cream, children laughing, and Labor Day make some of the best memories. The day is a national celebration of the contributions by workers to the prosperity of our country.

As I listen to the business community, there are many messages. I find that times are tough for many and very tough for some. I hear that we are going to see waves of economic turbulence over the next few years. I understand that local and state governments are going to face budget constraints that will challenge them to make tough choices. Though this is not what I want to hear and certainly not what I hope will transpire, I prefer to be prepared to face the challenges with a range of possible solutions.

One of the most interesting solutions is to create more good jobs in Culpeper. What can new jobs do for us? Simply stated, jobs can bring homebuyers into Culpeper and could help to stabilize our real estate inventory surplus. Of course, the resulting higher real estate values would have many positive effects on the local economy. More employed workers in Culpeper means more money spent in Culpeper — this supports our schools, businesses, and community organizations.

What can we do to create jobs? Recruiting companies to Culpeper is one way to achieve this. However, this is also a time for the entrepreneur to find gold in the stream of economic turbulence. There are always opportunities for small business to find a niche and fill it. We can create more jobs quickly thru small business while we are waiting for large businesses to be recruited to locate here.

“Individuals who strive to be successful and work hard become the entrepreneurs that help lift us from times of recession. This same spirit of ordinary people doing extraordinary things built this Country, our United States of America into the priceless jewel that it is. We know that spirit is here in Culpeper and great things are going to happen because we are driven to succeed.

We have monuments and statues that celebrate our past successes and the sacrifices of many that have made and kept our Country free. And only a free country truly allows that entrepreneurial spirit to thrive to create jobs that support our families, our churches, our retailers, our service providers and our non-profit groups. Charts, graphs, percentage calculations and economic speculation have never created a single job. Our history of achievement is the foundation laid by those before us to inspire us to lead Culpeper to greater achievement today” said David Jones, Chairman of the Culpeper Chamber of Commerce. 

While you are sipping on your favorite Labor Day beverage take a moment to dream big. Go the extra step and write down your dream. Regardless of how we look at it our success individually and as a community is up to us. May your dreams turn to gold …  and bring us jobs!

Jim Charapich is the president of the Culpeper Chamber of Commerce. His column appears each Monday.