Murfreesboro Mayor Shane McFarland will be the special guest speaker at Locally Owned Murfreesboro's monthly meeting 8:00 o'clock Thursday morning, February 2nd at Cultivate Co-working, 107 W. Lytle Street.

The mayor will talk about how the city is working to promote small businesses and how small businesses can work with the city.

"Locally owned and small businesses are the backbone of our community," said McFarland, who is an independent business owner himself. "Cultivating entrepreneurial small businesses and locally owned businesses is something I personally think is vital to the success of Murfreesboro."

Shane McFarland Construction, based in Murfreesboro, is a full-service custom home builder and commercial construction company in Middle Tennessee.

McFarland was elected Murfreesboro mayor in 2014 after several years serving on the Murfreesboro City Council.

LOM President Gretchen Bilbro said the nonprofit's board thought McFarland was the perfect speaker for the organization's first meeting.

"One of the aspects of Locally Owned Murfreesboro is providing an organized shared voice for independent businesses in local government. This gives our membership a chance to meet with and pick the brain of the mayor. It also gives him a chance to connect with Murfreesboro's small business community," Bilbro said.

Refreshments will be provided by LOM member Simply Pure Sweets, which specializes in French-inspired pastries and classic Southern desserts.

The meeting is free for LOM members and $10 for nonmembers. Tickets can be purchased at locallyownedmurfreesboro.org/join/event-ticket-for-nonmembers.

About Locally Owned Murfreesboro

An affiliate of the American Independent Business Alliance, Locally Owned Murfreesboro was formed in March 2015

LOM is an organization of independent local business owners dedicated to promoting the benefits supporting independent businesses to the community and building a stronger local economy by joining together in marketing, government advocacy and networking.

Because Murfreesboro Matters.

More information can be found at locallyownedmurfreesboro.org.