PHOENIX — A Valley businessman is taking action to honor the workers who have kept our communities going strong throughout the pandemic.
Tom Frank has opened more than 80 restaurants in his lifetime but says this is his most important work yet. He wanted to find a way to give back to essential workers, so he partnered with a friend who is a graphic designer to create the "I'm Essential Project."
The goal is to hand out special stickers or buttons to essential workers or have companies order them for their own employees.
Frank is hoping workers get the credit and praise they deserve -- a small gesture, he hopes will make these workers feel good.
"There are so many people that have been invisible for so long that we are seeing now," explains Frank. "Like the guy washing the cart at the grocery store --how could you be more essential than that? Think about what it would be like without mail delivery or garbage pick-up or all of the things that we encounter?"
Frank hopes this creates a movement that goes beyond the pandemic.
"What we're hoping for is this to outlast the epidemic and become a permanent shift in mindset and what it means to be essential and how to deliver a sense of meaningfulness to employees."
If you would like to order these stickers for your business, or maybe some essential workers in your life, go to IMESSENTIALPROJECT.COM.
