Rural Economic Alliance REAL

03/12/2026

🌟 Halsey Highlights: Farmer’s Food Shack 🌟

Halsey Highlights is a new program designed to share information about local businesses and promote them within our community. This month, we’re excited to spotlight Farmer’s Food Shack, a newly opened café located at 80 W. 2nd Street, just south of the Highway 99E and Highway 228 intersection.

🥞 Fresh Breakfast & Lunch Options
Farmer’s Food Shack is open Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., serving a variety of homemade breakfast and lunch favorites. Menu items include biscuits and gravy, breakfast burritos, soups, wraps, and more.

☕ In addition to hearty meals, the café offers coffee (including several sugar-free flavors), energy drinks, and smoothies.
You can view the full menu on their page — be sure to follow them for daily specials and updates!

⏱ Short on time? Call ahead to place your order: 541-369-2626

🌱 A Dream Realized
Owner Becky Freitag, a small-town native and farmer’s daughter, has long dreamed of creating a welcoming gathering place in Halsey where people can enjoy a home-cooked meal and a great cup of coffee. With the opening of Farmer’s Food Shack, that dream has become a reality. Becky credits her family and the Halsey community for their support in helping bring her vision to life.

📣 Let Us Highlight Your Business!
Are you a Halsey business owner who would like to be featured in Halsey Highlights? We’d love to hear from you!

📞 Contact City Hall at 541-369-2522 or visit the Business & Economic Development page on the City of Halsey website for more information.
https://halseyor.gov/services/business___economic_developments/index.php

03/01/2026

Places like Shoppe of Shalom are what make our small towns special. Rooted in tradition, family, and connection — this is the kind of business that strengthens Central Linn. Proud to support local.

02/25/2026

Lebanon was proud to host a standout Oregon business conference at the Boulder Falls Event Center, where Weldwood Marketing brought together marketing leaders from across the country for two days of practical insight and inspiration.
Speakers including New Normal Media, Luke Kostka, and Todd Radio FM, Todd Scherer emphasized that small-community businesses can thrive online by leaning into authenticity, focus, smart delegation, and sustainable growth strategies.
National expertise met strong local chamber representation—proving that rural communities can host big ideas and build even bigger momentum.

02/01/2026

Jake is the Founder and Owner of Weldwood Marketing and recently opened a top-of-the-line podcast studio in Lebanon designed specifically for local business owners. What started as an in-house tool has quickly become a shared community resource—giving entrepreneurs access to professional-quality audio, video, and production support without needing to travel or invest in expensive equipment. Jake sees the studio as a way to help businesses clearly tell their stories, build credibility, and create media assets they can actually use—podcasts, interviews, and short-form content that strengthens their brand and reach.

That same business-owner-first mindset is driving the Oregon Business Conference happening this month, in Lebanon.

https://oregonbusinessconference.com/

Built by a business owner for business owners, the conference is intentionally practical—focused on real decisions, real constraints, and real tools that help companies grow. Instead of theory or hype, attendees learn directly from peers and experienced operators, with sessions on media, staffing, funding, clarity, and ex*****on. Jake’s goal is simple: make high-quality resources accessible in the Central Willamette Valley and create a room full of people who learn from each other and leave better equipped to run their businesses.

01/15/2026

Congratulations to Pami Monnette owner of County Line Flowers and their grand opening in Philomath next to Timber Towne Coffee. Pami has deep experience with supporting farm-based businesses she spent time combining her flower business with events. She is proud of the fact that her business in reality buys products from 12 plus local farms and other value add agricultural businesses in the area. There's even space in the flower shop for a variety of locally made products like pottery and wool. The open house featured wine from the local 3 Fools Wine Company.

04/28/2025

Rural Economic Alliance REAL organization comprised of nine cities across Benton and Linn County. Click on the link below for a full listing of classes for business owners and potential business owners.

https://tinyurl.com/v8r5eew

01/08/2025

The City of Tangent has a brand new page. Be sure to follow the City of Tangent.

https://www.facebook.com/TangentOregon/

Incorporated municipality since 1973

10/10/2024

Fund your small Business!
Eat Pizza!

Wednesday, October 23, 1-2:20 PM at Corvallis Chinook Hall 111-112.

Register at linnbenton.edu/sbdc

08/21/2024

The Small Business Development Center is hiring a full-time Spanish Language Program Specialist and we need your help getting the word out! This is an impactful position but tricky to hire for. The position closes on Sept 2nd. This person will be out in the community and in the office partnering with Spanish-speakers to help them start small businesses, grow existing businesses, and to be successful.

The position will involve one-on-one business advising and mentorship, teaching workshops, planning events, and building relationships across Linn and Benton counties. (This backfills Gabriela Orellana's position; she's in a new role with Community Lending Works.) The ideal candidate is fluent in Spanish, has business experience, the ability to relate well with others, and the ability to speak and teach in front of groups of people. LBCC has great benefits and this role will have a tremendous impact on our community!

This position supports the director of the Small Business Development Center with all aspects of the center’s Spanish-speaking business outreach program. Common tasks include business advising, coordinating and planning trainings/workshops, event planning, direct client outreach via email, phone, ...

05/01/2024

"Boost Your Business Online" and "Get Customers without Social Media" are coming up too in May, great learning opps for small businesses looking to grow their footprint.

Does your business feel invisible online? Maybe you're trying to get more customers, but no one is coming to your website to buy. This course will focus on how to create an effective website, common mistakes to avoid, getting more traffic, and online content to attract the right customer and boost y...

04/29/2024

• Start Your Business in Six Weeks, getting some great interest in this one. Still a couple rural entrepreneur scholarships available. Starts May 8

This 6-part class will help you go from napkin idea to launched business. Be your own boss and explore customers, pricing, and more. Individual coaching and limited scholarships available.