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Writer thankful for our local businesses
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 Dear editor,

This letter is written to share my gratitude for one of Great Bend’s small businesses. 

Like many of our fellow citizens, I traveled to Nebraska for the Great American Eclipse. While at our hotel pool, my youngest daughter was struggling to keep her head above the water, I walked into the pool to pull her to safety – fully clothed and with my phone in my pocket. My daughter lived to see the eclipse. My phone did not.

Fast forward through a magnificent Eclipse viewing, new phone purchase, and the ugly realization my last data backup was two years ago. 

When the phone company would not connect to a water damaged phone to attempt data recovery, the Great Google was solicited. 

The national data recovery company contacted quoted me three levels of service, the least expensive starting at $800 but they were happy to cover any shipping fees.

I debated if the Summers worth of photos and my daughters sweet love notes were worth the expense. Then I remembered my sons first birthday photos from this weekend were lost, too. Somehow, I would have to get my photos.

Before I sent my phone off to some distant state I sent a message to a local computer service company, that offered to try.

This week, the owner recovered my data. The first birthday cake eating. The family vacation. The first Pony purchase. The I Love You Mommy notes with hearts and rainbows. To say I am grateful is an understatement but I have not touched upon the greatest part.

The Price.

For what the national company would have paid to ship the phone round trip, this company recovered my data. He charged me less than 5 percent what I would have paid had I forgot to check local. 

So, we come full circle, the photos lost on the Eclipse Trip were recovered in a fitting manner. The Great Bend Eclipse, where the local small business eclipsed the distant giant company in terms of price and service.

Amber Rugan

Ellinwood