Dec. 3, 2020

Annual staples of the business-social calendar are nowhere to be found this year as corporate holiday parties have become the latest casualty of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I have received zero invitations to zero parties this year,” Lawrence & Schiller CEO Scott Lawrence said. “It’s very, very quiet.”

It started with Bluestem Capital, typically the first party on his holiday calendar.

“We don’t know the future of this pandemic and will not take the risk that one guest contracts COVID at our function,” the email canceling the holiday open house read.

The hope is to reschedule in the spring if it can be conducted in a healthy manner, the firm said. In the meantime, it’s making a donation to local charities on behalf of its investors.

“I think everyone is a little skittish,” Lawrence said. “We’ve been back at full strength in the office since June 15 and have protocols in place, and we’ve been very stringent about them — so far so good. We’ve had no interoffice spread or anything. I’m very thankful.”

His own firm shelved its annual holiday party a few years ago, after a 40th annual celebration featuring Three Dog Night.

The plan is to bring it back during milestone anniversaries, including the 45th next year.

Instead, the company had a gathering this week at The District for employees only.

“And that worked out really well,” Lawrence said. “We could socially distance and talk about the future and finish up this year, which finished unbelievably well.”

Woods, Fuller, Shultz & Smith PC, whose open house is another staple on the holiday party circuit for many in the business community, also took a different approach this year.

Its annual celebration on the main stage at the Washington Pavilion doesn’t allow for enough distancing.

“We found people would stay for hours because it was a great opportunity for networking, and we typically have 350 to 400 attend that event,” said attorney Jim Wiederrich, a member of the firm’s board.

“But what we’ve done this year is chosen five charities … and we are sending them charitable contributions that would total what we spent in a typical year on our open house.”

In addition, Woods Fuller has canceled its party for staff and attorneys and is giving a bonus equal to what would have been spent on the event.

“That’s in recognition that they have worked hard and in strange and unusual circumstances this year through the pandemic,” Wiederrich said.

“If you had told me in March or April we’d be on track to meet our (2020) goal, I would have thought that was a lofty desire not likely to be achieved, but I’d say the last half of the year has been super strong.”

The firm contributes a portion of its annual revenue to charities every year. In addition, this year it’s putting special emphasis on giving items from local businesses as client gifts.

“They include bakeries and restaurants and all kinds of home and office decor,” Wiederrich said.

The First National Bank in Sioux Falls typically holds a large Christmas party for employees at a rented venue and a big customer appreciation party in its downtown atrium.

“And this year, of course, we couldn’t do that,” said mortgage loan originator Chase Hoffman, who chaired the bank’s employee well-being committee this year.

His committee put together 20 days of activities between Thanksgiving and Christmas instead.

“It’s basically anything from trivia games to bingo with prizes, handing out holiday recipes, we’re putting together a map of all the different streets you can go down to look at Christmas lights, so every day will have something different,” Hoffman said.

Employees also were given insulated tumblers, a gift card for local businesses and can win gift baskets filled with local products. The bank also committed to donating winter apparel during the holiday season and beyond.

“This has been the best challenge we could have had as a (well-being) group,” Hoffman said. “COVID has put us at the forefront of everybody’s minds because this is a situation built for us to react to, and we’ve had to adapt and learn on the fly and make it work. And thankfully, the bank has given us the flexibility to do that. They just laid down the ground rules, no meeting in person, and whatever else you need to do to bring happiness and joy and fun is fine.”

Another business is translating its client holiday celebration to an online version.

605 Real Estate typically invites clients for a party featuring a visit from Santa, holiday crafting, food, drinks and entertainment, while collecting donations for a nonprofit.

“Our holiday party is our way to connect with our clients, show gratitude for their support and give back to the city we love,” broker associate Beth Meyer said. “When COVID hit this year, our brokerage knew it was best to avoid large gatherings to help slow the spread.”

So they took to Facebook for 12 days of giveaways starting Dec. 1. Visitors to the page can enter to win gift cards from a different local business each day.

“Our hope is to show support to all those local places that might be struggling due to the pandemic,” Meyer said.

“But we didn’t stop there. We are asking for donations of gifts for the Children’s Home Society campus wish list as well. We love our clients, we love what we do, and our great city of Sioux Falls is what makes all of this possible. This year may look different, but we feel you can still find ways to make an impact.”

The lack of corporate holiday functions has been felt at dining and event venues.

“The calls for Christmas parties are pretty few and far between,” R Wine Bar & Kitchen owner Riccardo Tarabelsi said.

“They’re reallocating money to something else, whether it’s a gift or bonus for employees, and some are still having them, but they’re much smaller. Given the current environment, I’m thankful I have as much space as I do because we can space out so easily and provide that level of comfort for people.”