The Sunshine Report Why Main Street Matters Karen and Jay celebrate the importance of Main Street in America! There’s nothing quite like walking down the Main Street in a small town or community – doing some shopping. Walking from store to store and picking up various items as you go. And, while you may be making some purchases along the way, it’s not really about the transactions. It’s about the experience. It’s the conversations you have as you talk with store owners, ask about their families, and find out the latest news in town. You bump into neighbors and friends along the way. There is a real feeling of community, a feeling of ‘belonging.’ This is what I remember growing up in the small town of Newport, New Hampshire. And it’s a feeling that I think many of us value. This past weekend, I took a trip over to Claremont, New Hampshire, right next door to my hometown of Newport, to enjoy ‘Claremont Day,’ a celebration of the continued revitalization of Pleasant Street - Claremont’s main street. The energy on the street was incredible. Tents were out promoting local businesses and services. Great food was being served by local restaurants including a new coffee shop. Also, got a tour of a ‘speakeasy’ - a sneak peak of their exciting business that is launching in the next few weeks. To see a community like Claremont that has dealt with more than its fair share of adversity over the last few decades come to life the way that it did last weekend wasn’t just inspiring, it was electrifying. Seeing folks from across New Hampshire as well as New England, sharing in conversations, making connections, and enjoying a feeling of community gave us all a glimpse of what ‘Main Street’ truly means to small towns and communities across America. While we may often think of Main Street purely from an economic perspective, the real meaning of Main Street, and the reasons to champion it, run much deeper. What Main Street offers us goes beyond simple transactions like buying provisions for our home, it offers us a sense of place where connections to community are made, and where a sense of security and comfort takes shape. Being on a first-name basis with the local baker or bookstore owner, knowing a little bit about their lives for example, creates a personal bond to the community, strengthening our sense of identity and local pride. In turn, we tend to become more actively involved in our communities, facing challenges collectively as they come while also preserving the things that matter most. When we lose a sense of place, we tend to see the homogenization of our communities, which in turn has its own economic and social downsides. As small towns continue to face even more competition from the global economy, the importance of preserving the culture of our Main Streets becomes all too clear. They aren’t simply places of commerce, they are bastions of culture and community, the very heart and soul of our shared history. As Pulitzer Prize winning author Wallace Stegner once said, “If you don’t know where you are, you don’t know who you are.” When our Main Streets are vibrant, so too our communities, and when our communities are strong, so too are our values. As I strolled down Pleasant Street last weekend, I had the good fortune of having a few conversations with local store owners and leaders, each of whom expressed incredible optimism for what rebuilding Main Street could do for the Claremont community and even the region. When I finally got in my car to drive home after such a wonderful day, I was overcome by a spirit of optimism about what we can accomplish and restore when we champion our small towns little by little, Main Street by Main Street. Read The Report Rebirth of Main Street and Claremont Read More Meredith’s Great Main Street Read More Positive Profile of the Week: Steve Duprey - A Lifetime of Service to the Granite State and Beyond! This week we are delighted to profile a great friend and leader in the Granite State - Steve Duprey. A true New Hampshire native, Steve has played a major role our state’s politics for many years as well as his leadership in the redevelopment of downtown Concord. Steve was first elected to the New Hampshire House of Representatives at the age of 19. At the time, this made him the youngest State Representative in the country. He went on from there to graduate from New College in Florida and earn his law degree from Cornell University, shortly thereafter entering the practice of law. However, it didn’t take long for Steve’s entrepreneurial instincts to take hold as he soon entered the real estate development and property management business with great energy and enthusiasm. In so doing and over the years, Steve has become one of the most successful and highly respected business leaders in New Hampshire, as founder and leader of Foxfire Property Management, based in Concord. Meanwhile, Steve has stayed active politically throughout his career. After serving in the New Hampshire House, he later became Chairman of the New Hampshire Republican Party, serving four two-year terms, running for Congress and then for many years serving as the Party’s National Committeeman from New Hampshire. In that position, Steve was well-known for his steadfast support for the New Hampshire First in the Nation Presidential Primary and skillfully protected our state’s role - even flying in national party leaders during the primary season so they could see why New Hampshire deserved to stay first. He truly is an ‘unsung hero’ in maintaining our 100-year tradition of going first. Steve has also risen to national prominence. Perhaps most notably through his close relationship with and support for Senator John McCain. Steve was instrumental in Sen. McCain’s success in New Hampshire and beyond during his presidential campaigns. Steve and the late senator shared a close bond. In addition to all of this, Steve has also been an incredible civic leader in the City of Concord. Like so many other small towns and cities, Concord too had seen its Main Street deteriorate and lose its vibrance and bustle over the years. With vision and leadership, Steve rose to the challenge and largely due to his efforts, the Main Street of Concord has been revitalized and is truly thriving with wonderful shops, boutiques, restaurants and more. The next time you travel to Concord, and stroll downtown, know that you are enjoying Steve Duprey’s handiwork. And, even more to come - Steve was recently appointed by Governor Sununu to the Pease Development Authority so he could take his entrepreneurial talents to yet another initiative, the expansion of the Pease Airport and business community on the Seacoast. We in New Hampshire are truly fortunate to have Steve’s energy, leadership, and selfless dedication to our State. Thank you, Steve, for all that you do! Quotes of the Week Main Street, U.S.A. is America at the turn of the century--the crossroads of an era. The gas lamps and the electric lamp--the horse-drawn car and auto car. Main Street is everyone's hometown- the heart line of America. 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