If your flood damaged clothing, bedding, or other items that can be laundered or dry cleaned, please consider calling my close personal friend Jan Barlow at Jan's Cleaners in Clio, MI. She specializes in Water and Fire Damaged orders and is willing to come to the Midland area to provide pickup and delivery services for flood damaged orders.

Please call her at 810.687.7590 or visit her website janscleaners.com

Four things I’ve considered over that have led me to the decision to delay re-opening our business.

1) Yesterday my wife and I had a meeting with two other members of our team. We covered the safety of our team if we re-open, the current needs of our customer base, what potential sales would look like, unique hours/days of operation, our financial stability including how long we can remain closed with zero income, PPE necessary to re-open diligently, added costs to our process due to the pandemic, and more.

2) This morning the news reported that Wisconsin’s Supreme Court ruled that the Governor of Wisconsin’s “Stay at Home order” is unconstitutional and can’t be enforced. I’m guessing Michigan will be right behind. They immediately cut to a bar that re-opened last night in Wisconsin with patrons tightly packed and mask-free. That led me to glance over at a plaque we’ve had on a wall in our home that has served our family well for the better part of 2 decades. The last line reads “Character is Everything” and that line is embedded deep in my heart. It led me to take action and watch a YouTube video which is #3

3) The movie “Rudy” had a profound impact on certain parts of my life…especially the character part of my life in one particular part. Here’s the link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cqJG-fOoTM
It get’s me every time when I hear Notre Dames coach look at his star player, who wants Rudy to dress for an important game instead of him, and the coach says “You’re an All-American and our Captain….Act like it” and the star player reply’s “I Believe I Am.” That particular clip of the movie gives me strength to believe in my decision making process because of the foundation of character that it’s built upon.

4) In many of my speeches I refer to the book “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen Covey. The 2nd Habit is: “Begin with the End in Mind – Principles of Personal Leadership.” Covey takes you on a journey of projecting what people from four groups will say about you at your funeral. The four groups are: Family, Friends, Co-workers, and Community Members and one person from each group will be speaking. Covey explains that ultimately, the person who has the highest level of influence over what others will says about us….is US. Throughout our life WE get to manage what others will eventually say in regard to how we lived our life. I re-read that chapter this morning and it brought me confidence and comfort in the belief that as of today my Nope…Not Yet decision is the right decision. It’s what my heart is telling me to do after 62 years of enthusiastically studying this process we call Life.

I’ll continue to study and acquire information from a wide array of sources. I’ll explore every possibility…and then some…in an effort to re-configure our company, the services we can offer, and the changing needs of our society (which are changing at lightning speed right now) in order to determine a strategy that allows us to open, stay open, and achieve ongoing profitability. Profitability is not the end-all be-all but it’s an important piece to the total puzzle.

My wish for YOU? Stay Safe, Stay Healthy, Help Others, Choose to be Kind, Don’t Judge, Start with Compassion….Finish with Encouragement. Encouragement has a proven track record and it’s something we could ALL use a dose of each day!
Oh, and I almost forgot…actively manage what people will say about YOU at your funeral. It’s a worthwhile exercise.

*Due to the Covid-19 Crisis our stores are closed. If you have an order at either of our locations or ready for delivery on our route, AND IT'S AN EMERGENCY THAT YOU MUST HAVE THOSE CLOTHES, please call 750-8505 and we will make arrangements to get that order in your hands. We are asking our team members to limit, as much as possible, ANY unnecessary interaction with other people. We are asking our customers, that we truly value knowing that our livelihood is dependent on YOU, to please be patient as we navigate this world, national, state, and now local crisis.

Thank You for your patience, kindness, and understanding. On the other side of this we'll be a more compassionate and caring society. It's inevitable.