It’s no secret that the holiday season is the season of giving. It’s the time when most people are so filled with Christmas joy that reaching in their pockets to donate to the less fortunate and volunteering their time and hard work to help others comes easy.

It just feels right to give back when the holiday spirit washes over you.

I commend those generous individuals for all they do. Because the holidays are a time when family comes together, it always warms my heart to see the public making an effort to make the less fortunate feel like there are loved as much as any relative would be.

What’s disappointing is when people only give around the holidays, but don’t help out during the other times of the year.

Fortunately, from what I’ve seen in the year I’ve been here in Selma, Selmians aren’t typically those kinds of people. Residents here give back all year long, and that’s a beautiful thing.

No matter the month, you can always find a group, organization or individual conducting or planning an event that will benefit others.

In April, the Dallas County Relay for Life held its annual Sherri S. James Annual Survivor’s Banquet. It was fun way to highlight the strength of those who have been diagnosed with cancer, while raising money for the American Cancer Society.

In July, Edmundite Missions held a Slice of Hope event that encouraged the community to donate school supplies to local youth headed back to school.

In September, the Dallas County Court Services held its Justice for All Charity Ball at the Selma Convention Center, raising thousands to fund its rehabilitation services.

And those are just a few of the countless efforts Selma hosts to tackle issues within Selma and far beyond the city.

I’m not sure what it is about this place that makes so many willing to help out on a far more consistent basis, but I appreciate it.

With Dallas County being a Black Belt county, it tends to be home to high poverty rates, poor health, low employment and other social issues. Those issues are year-round problems, so they warrant year-round attention.

I’m proud to call Selma home.

I can only hope that people who visit Selma or reside here for any period of time take that type of giving spirit and spread it the communities they travel to after Selma. As much as these acts of kindness are needed, they don’t happen as often as they should.

There are always more problems in the world to address.We have to keep on coming up with new innovative, fun, effective ways to solve them.

When it comes to Selma, I have faith that we will be just fine.

There is plenty of love here to change this city and county for the better.