Do you need a gift idea?

Wallowa Chamber bucks are the gift that keeps giving locally

When there is someone you want to honor or appreciate, think local. Do you have special guests coming to town? Give the gift that uniquely says "Wallowa County" with a Chamber Buck gift certificate. They come in denominations of $10 and $25.

Recipients can spend the bucks around the county to acquire basic needs or treats. It's a 360 win. The recipients are happy, the businesses are happy, and the local community benefits when value circulates locally. That's a lot of  happy people, so why not head down to the Wallowa County Chamber of Commerce office in Enterprise today and trade some federal reserve notes for genuine Wallowa Buckskin Bucks?

From hanging floral baskets to massages, computer supplies, groceries, overnight lodgings, food, hardware, clothing, jewelry, art, fishing tackle, pet grooming, a quilt, propane, or even an espresso, there are many ways to share the love with Wallowa Buckskin Bucks.

Be sure to tell the recipients they have one year from the purchase date written on their bucks to redeem their certificates.

Wallowa bucks are gladly accepted at the following businesses, so check them out and let your gifting imagination run wild: (Look for campaign decals on participating storefronts.)

The list of businesses on the back of the bucks may become slightly out-of-date, so be sure to check the Wallowa County Buy Local Web page for the current list of participants.

• Alder Slope Nursery
• Anton's Home & Hearth
• Arrowhead Chocolates
• Backyard Gardens
• Bee Charmed Marketplace
• Bird Dog Signs
• Blue Mountain Computer
• Bronze Antler B&B, Inc.
• Cabin Fever Cafe & NW Marketplace
• Camerons Wallowa County Ace Hardware
• Carpet One
• Cattle Country Quilts
• Copper Creek Mercantile
• Deb's Apparel & Gifts
• Embers Brew House
• Enterprise Animal Hospital
• Enterprise Flower Shop
• Favorite Finds on Main - Antiques
• Joseph Fly Shoppe, LLC
• Joseph Hardware, Inc.
• Lamb Trading Company, LLC
• Longhorn Espresso
• M. Crow & Company
• Mad Mary's
• Marcy's Skin Care
• Mt. Joseph Family Foods
• Outlaw Restaurant & Saloon
• Phinney Gallery of Fine Art
• Pioneer West, Inc.
• Radiant Massage
• Red Horse Coffee Traders
• Red Rooster Cafe
• Ruby Peak Naturals
• Simply Sandy's
• Stein Distillery, Inc.
• Stewart Jones Designs
• Stubborn Mule Saloon & Steakhouse
• Sugar Time Bakery
• Tempting Teal Boutique
• The Blonde Strawberry
• The Bookloft
• The Dollar Stretcher
• The Peace Pipe
• The Sheep Shed
• The Sports Corral, Inc.
• Timber Bronze 53 LLC
• to Zion
• Vali's Alpine Restaurant, LLC
• Wallowa County Grain Growers
• Wallowa County Nursery
• Wallowa Food City
• Wild Carrots Herbals

Inspired by Historical Emergency Scrip

The present-day Buckskin Bucks were inspired by the emergency scrip that was printed on leather and issued in Enterprise during the Great Depression, when the county's general fund ran dry, but there were plenty of deer hides.

The original Wallowa County Bucks are collector's items that occasionally pop up online. As of this writing, one is for sale on E-bay for $225. Who knows -- maybe in 100 years today's Buckskin Bucks will be collectible as well.

Today's Bucks are part of the Wallowa Chamber's pragmatic year-round shop local campaign, "Think First Wallowa County." The program is sponsored by the Chamber, Community Bank, and Esprit.