Dear editor,

As a citizen of Selma, I wanted to encourage schools, organizations, businesses and government entities in our community to embrace and research the possibilities of the new designation that our city has received.

The designation, a Preserve America Community is a White House initiative that encourages and supports community efforts to preserve and enjoy culture and natural heritage.

The following are cooperating entities:

the U.S. Departments of Defense, Interior, Agriculture, Commerce, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, and Education; the National Endowment for the Humanities; the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities; and the President’s Council on Environmental Quality.

Is this a big deal? Yes.

Why? Preserve America Communities

use their historic assets for

economic development and community revitalization, and encourage people to experience and appreciate local historic resources through education and heritage tourism programs.

Visit the Web site: http://www.preserveamerica.gov.

What type of support is involved?

Federal support.

Grants are designed to support

a variety of activities linking historic properties as educational and economic assets.

These grants are intended to complement the bricks and mortar grants available under the Save America&8217;s Treasures program.

For information on the application process please visit the National Park Service Web site at: http://www.nps.gov.

Preserve America in the search engine.

Who can apply for federal grants? State, and local governments, nonprofit organizations, and educational

institutions for preservation projects.

For additional information please visit the Web sites mentioned in this letter.

Thank you,

Tina Smiley