Over the nearly 20 years I have been writing these annual wrap-ups in one economic development capacity or another, my reports have been overwhelmingly upbeat and positive. Even during the most challenging years of the Great Recession, it was easy to find a silver lining. 2020 was a difficult year for Anson County, and while there were a few positives to be found, it would come across as tone-deaf not to acknowledge that fact. In addition to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has driven many of our businesses to the brink, our Walmart's shuttering was an unexpected blow to our local economy. Whether you are a proponent of the Walmart way of doing things or not, anything that decreases the retail options for Anson County is negative. Early in the pandemic, the county seemed to be faring better than the surrounding area. Our case count was relatively low; our industries were not announcing the massive layoffs occurring elsewhere; subsequently, our unemployment rate did not spike to nearly