To the Editor:

Perception and vision are vital keys to an abundant life.

For your service, support, and encouragement of Movie Festival 2006, thank you Congressional Staff, National Park Service, Gov. Riley, City of Selma, Dallas County, The Selma Times-Journal and business owners. Really, THANKS SELMA!

The future of the Selma Interpretive Site is dependent on our greatest resource.

The service of the generation of people present and service of the generation of people to come.

Service?

What is service?

The context of the word here is defined as a helpful or useful act or deed.

The individuals who gave of their time and talent as a service were vital keys in the success of Movie Festival 2006 (held during Jubilee 2006) and they made an impact on over 200 people for two days.

These people will be back again and again.

The numbers will double, triple, etc … and then what?

Selma’s motels, hotels, restaurants and businesses will flourish even more abundantly.

As the revenue flows – so as the impact on revenue for our schools, increased job creation and opportunities – small business owners will have the opportunity to offer comfortable employee benefit packages and so forth.

Envision this:

The Selma Interpretive Site being staffed by 30-60 federal employees of the National Park Service.

Employees who were mentored students through the Jr. Ranger Program of Selma.

And now envision those mentored entrepreneurial students operating spin-off businesses that were created. Now envision the Interpretive Site’s “Transportation System” which is a dual multi-modal system being dependent on operation, maintenance, and technical assistance.

To have this vision, for all Selmians, of the future we must be conscious of the principle of Hebrews 11:1.

Selma-Dallas County is a blessed area because of the rich history.

It is the history that bridges the gap by providing opportunities for the future.

We must make steps to improve our current and future quality of life.

Sometimes small steps and sometimes big steps, ‘we’ need to move out of our current conditions and confidently rest in Romans 8:28. (Hiding behind the bible? Okay, that’s a good place to be.)

Now, we as parents must inform and be informed of the SECME program being offered by the City.

We as parents must inform and be informed of the JAG Program being offered by the County.

We as parents must inform and be informed of after-school programs and the curriculum our private schools offer.

We as adults must inform and be informed of the FIT Program as well as other avenues to improve our marketable job skills.

We as a community must look out for the best interest of each other, protect each other.

But, in the grand end of it all, without God being first in our lives, we will fail.

The basic human needs can best be summed in the perception of Jesus’ life and by reading the three epistles of John.

Truly, let us not place him on the backburner.

Tina S. Price