YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — Now More Than Ever! Rally Around Small Business 2020 is underway. As the campaign continues, The Business Journal introduces you to some of the businesses nominated by community members as this year’s Unsung Heroes.
Click here to nominate a small business or check out a list of the current nominees. Nominations close June 1.
Myers Family Insurance in Greenford is considered an “essential business” by the state of Ohio and has remained open during the pandemic. Jim and Ann Myers, managing partners, had their employees briefly work from home.
The agency employs seven and all have returned after working from home. It provides retirement, health and Medicare planning. Jim Myers handles the Medicare and health side of the business while Ann Myers deals with retirement.
The Myers family supports the South Range School District and youth sports, donates money to fund field trips for students, brings non-perishable baskets to senior living facilities and to people in need, and supports neighborhood events.
Ann Myers is on the board of directors for Camp Frederick in Rogers and Focus Hippotherapy. Hippotherapy allows children with special needs to ride horses as a way of socializing and undergoing physical therapy at the same time.
“To be able to ride horses and have it help them – whether they have autism or other disabilities – it’s an amazing thing to see and to be a part of,” Jim Myers says.
Ann Myers says local businesses must support local families. Most of the agency’s employees graduated from South Range High School.
“It isn’t about anything other than doing the right thing,” she observes. “Running small business, supporting small business – it’s the same thing.
“It’s the livelihood of our children. It’s the livelihood of people’s household incomes. And small-business people are usually the ones that work even harder than those in big-box stores.”
Pictured: Jim and Ann Myers are the managing partners of Myers Family Insurance.