Editorial -- Fallonites are the Oasis of Nevada

To all our Fallon Friends and Family – this is a very strange time and we’ve heard from many of you who are asking questions, offering words of encouragement, and sending support so we can keep providing this essential service to the community. We are so grateful that you see us as a place for information and feel like the timing of this newspaper could not have been better. When I was running the economic development office a few years back, one of my team misguidedly referred to our town as “Fallabama” – a term we’ve all heard and possibly used as a local slur. Working in our disco-ball decorated office was usually a really fun time, but that day Dahl preached the importance of self-pride in our community and in each other, and no one in our office ever called Fallon by that term again. This is Fallon and we are Fallonites. Now is the time for our special Fallon spirit to kick into high gear. We are a unique and special place with some magic that happens when the chips are down. We take care of each other. We look out for our elders and our kids and have for generations. You know darn well your mom would know what you did before you ever even made it home. Now is the time for us to remember who we are – to be extra vigilant checking on each other, dropping by some soup and dog food. Yes, we should probably leave it on the porch rather than going in for a visit, but let’s use this weird extra time we have to be there for each other. We also need to be creative in how we support our local businesses. Many of our restaurants shifted gears quickly last night after hearing the Governor’s declaration and will be staying open to provide curbside or delivery service. Many of our retailers are willing to meet us at the curb with merchandise ordered over the phone. Check in with your favorite small business and let’s use them as much as possible and do all we can do to make sure they make it through this so we have them when its over. Additionally, we are blessed with dedicated health care providers, stellar emergency response professionals, local government staff, and elected officials who have been working around the clock under extreme pressure, in completely unchartered territory to make decisions and provide services to make our lives as easy as they can and keep our community strong. It is a thankless job for which they receive intense scrutiny and criticism, and we are grateful for all they do. We joke all the time about those of us who run off after high school or leave for some grand adventure and then a few years later return back to Fallon – back to the fold. There is a magnet here, and each of us has some homing device that keeps us connected. We are so lucky to have each other – especially during these tumultuous times. They call us the "Oasis of Nevada" for our beautiful farming community, but what they don't know is the real treasure is who we are as people. Please keep in touch and let us know where help is needed. We don’t always have the immediate answers, but we know where to find them. There are resources every where right now and no one needs to suffer – Fallonites always pull through. As always -- keeping you posted, Rach