Shop locally, shop safely

With the holidays nearly upon us, we once again encourage you to skip the madness at the mall and shop close to home. In these tough economic times, it’s crucial that residents support their local businesses. If “Shop on Main Street” seems to have become an annual holiday-season motto, there’s good reason: Local businesses make invaluable contributions to a neighborhood’s financial health.

The vast majority of the more than 90,000 businesses on Long Island employ fewer than 50 people. Most of those employees are local people, who in turn spend money in their communities. The businesses they work for are large contributors to the tax base, so supporting them helps support local schools.

And business owners give so much back to the community. How many times have you noted a local restaurant’s or store’s name on the back of a softball jersey, at an annual fair, or listed with a local charity? Probably too many times to count.

So, spend money downtown, and take the advice of your local Police Department: Shop safely as well. It may seem like so much common sense in this day and age, but remember to lock your car when you park it, even among the neighborhood shops. Unlocked cars make thieves’ lives too easy. And when you leave your car, make sure all the things that make it worth breaking into — computers, iPods, phones, GPS devices — are out of sight, in your glove compartment or trunk.

While you’re shopping, keep your cash and credit cards in a front pocket, where they’re harder to grab. Also, try not to carry too much cash with you. Estimate what you’ll need to shop, and take just that much money.

At an ATM or paying at a cash register with a debit card, block the view of anyone near you as you enter your PIN. Thieves will stop at nothing to try to steal your personal information — even using cell phone cameras.

These are all variations on the most important tip of the shopping season: be aware of your surroundings. Keep that one simple rule in mind and you’ll minimize the stress of the holidays and remember them for being happy, warm and safe.