Editor’s Note: Jada Lumpkin is a student enrolled in Dr. Leo Jeffres’s Specialized Writing class.

I was at work as usual for my Sunday morning shift at the Olive Garden. It was one of those rare sunny days in March. 

“What time do you think the lunch rush is going to start?” my coworker asked.

“Around 2 p.m., when everyone will be out of church,” I replied.

However, we had no lunch rush at all.

Instead, the manager rushed in the front door to tell us that we had to do a “blitz” cleaning because one of our cooks was sent home with a very serious “virus.”  We needed to throw out all of the menus and wipe down all touch points. Corporate called our store directly with this order. My coworker and I looked at each other and thought the same thing. “Coronavirus.”

I began to worry because I work near the kitchen and I have low iron, therefore I tend to get sick easily. In addition, we have so many people come in and out of Olive Garden every day, I would hate to see all those people get sick. Of course, there wasn’t a lunch rush, so I was given the opportunity to leave work early. Little did I know, that would be my last day of working.

 I’ve now been out of work for close to a month. Not only did the coronavirus affect my weekend job at Olive Garden, but it affected my online store as well. Customers of my Strongsville mall pop up shop, Cleveland State African Night pop up shop and Beachwood mall event, all canceled one after the other. Some as far out as May. Online sales plummeted as well. Who’s thinking about buying clothes when many are out of work?

 When I got home, I received a few of my packages from China, but did not open any of them for  fear of catching the virus. Every time I looked on social media, I saw the death toll of people in China rising and the sickness spreading. Even though most of my clothing items are from U.S. vendors, the products I design are made in China, and around that time China was hit worse than anywhere.

It’s debatable whether coronavirus can be contracted through packages, but, either way, I would rather not risk my customers health. I had to think of how I would make it through this epidemic financially as well as how I would keep my business afloat. I was in college, with two jobs and an apartment of my own.  Now, suddenly I was out of work with barely any income, wondering how I would pay rent in the next few months.

For a few days I was overwhelmed. With this epidemic going on, I could barely pay rent, let alone keep a business afloat. This is a small clothing store; I didn't have thousands of dollars saved like other companies. Then I said to myself, “If I can’t make it through this, then I’m not meant to run a business.”

I began marketing vigorously; I rebranded my entire company. Instead of worrying, I used my time to learn how to graphic design logos and flyers and redesign my website.

I threw Instagram Live brand “parties” with a fashion show and music from an “in house” DJ. That “DJ” has been my boyfriend since his gigs have also been canceled because of COVID-19. All these factors increased my fan base and gave me hope for my business. When I received a notification that my store “Drip Pink Fashions” was in the top 19% of stores that opened the same week as me, I almost shed a tear.

This epidemic has probably been the most stressful time of my life, but it has forced me to become more resourceful than ever and pull out all my best marketing skills to stay afloat. At this point, all we can do is pray for the best.