A rose to Starkville sixth-grader, Jessica Widodo, for her performance in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C. Widodo, who just completed her sixth grade year at Partnership Middle School in Starkville, bowed out of the competition in the third round on Tuesday, finishing a respectable 164th in a field of 234 spellers, most of whom were seventh and eighth-graders. Widodo was just one of 34 sixth-graders (the youngest student eligible for the spelling bee), which makes her performance as Mississippi’s state champion speller all the more impressive. We congratulate Jessica for representing our state in such a fine fashion.
A thorn to the City of Columbus for its approach in asking the county for ARPA funds to support drainage projects within the city limits. For almost a year, the city has publicly said it was counting on millions of dollars in assistance from the county. The only problem is no formal request has ever been made. Supervisor Leroy Brooks last week said he has encouraged city councilmen to meet with the supervisors to discuss city needs, but to date none have done so. Last week, Columbus Mayor Keith Gaskin appeared before supervisors to again express an interest in partnering on drain projects, but, again, no actual plan was put forward. Predictably, supervisors were not convinced, although they did not shut the door entirely on providing some funding provided a plan is presented. While rural water associations are gearing up to ask supervisors for money for specific projects, the city is still talking in generalities. It’s well past time the city figures out what exactly they are asking for.
A rose to those who the Wizard of Oz referred to as “the Good Deed Doers” in our community, as a story in today’s edition illustrates. Led by Columbus businessman Ryan Munson, a group of community organizations has joined forces with volunteers to make desperately-needed repairs on the home of a Southside couple. The repairs will run into the thousands of dollars and require a great deal of volunteer hours to complete. We applaud these efforts, as a way to make another point: Granted, cash donations and volunteer hours are the lifeblood of our community charities, but looking out for our neighbors is not always an expensive or time-consuming effort. In truth, there are no small acts of kindness. We should all look for simple ways to help others: letting someone step ahead of you in a checkout lane, returning a shopping cart for someone in the grocery store parking lot, picking up the tab for a customer’s coffee. Yes, even a smile or a “hello” can sometimes change the trajectory of someone’s day. The happiest people, we believe, are those who have made helping others — even in the smallest of ways — a habit. And that’s something we all can do, regardless of our circumstance.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
