This past week I had the opportunity to ride along with a Selma police officer and an animal control officer for Selma.

I honestly didn’t know what to expect with either, but at the end of both, I had even more respect for the work that they do.

I rode along with Selma PD Officer Ray Moore at 1 a.m., and I got to see parts of Selma I had yet to see. For a while, not much was going on.

We rode through the city, checking out different places and making sure everything was OK.

While he was checking out different parts of town, and occasionally telling people to head inside instead of hanging around outside, I was asking question after question.

He was so nice to answer all of my questions and give me real feedback about his job.

Protecting a city is not an easy job, and it’s not one that a lot of people could do. But Moore has been a police offer for many years now, and from what I gathered in the short time I spent with him, he is good at what he does.

Moore said repeatedly that he does it because he likes to help other people, and he just likes his job. His intentions are ones that should be followed by everyone.

Like Officer Moore, Selma Animal Control Officer Clemente Marzette has his heart in the right place.

Marzette hasn’t been doing his job as long as Officer Moore, but while riding along with him I could see the pure joy his job brings him.

As we rode through the neighborhoods, Marzette could name about every house that had a pet. Most of the time, he also has a story to share.

It was amazing to watch him as he said hello to everyone, and mostly everyone said hello to him.

The people of Selma love this man, and I can really see why.

When we got back to the shelter, a dog had been left outside in one of the cages that they have set up.

I asked him some questions about cases, like when they get animals that are not in great condition. You could see the hurt in his eyes, seeing an animal like that.

His plans were to take him to the vet first thing the next morning, since everywhere was closed by that time.

You can tell how much he loves the animals by how he talks about them and interacts with them, but I can almost bet that the animals love him even more.

Walking into the shelter, every eye was on him. Tails were wagging and barks of joy could be heard throughout the building.

Looking back on my journey with these two amazing officers, I can’t help but be thankful to live in a place where people care so much about the people and the animals in the community.