Terri Barnes-Smith has had a passion for volunteering since she was a young girl. Her years of service started over 20 years ago.

“I’ve volunteered for a very long time,” she said. “When Habitat for Humanity was active back in the late 80’s. I was on the board and helped build a house.”

Smith now serves on the board of ArtsRevive where she helps with membership communications.

She joined the board of the organization after being recruited by several members already on the board.

The volunteering came easy for her, but volunteering for the arts took some adjusting.

“Volunteering was something that if there was just a need for, I had done it,” she said. “It seemed that everywhere I had volunteered in the past, there was a deficiency somewhere.”

Smith said by being involved with ArtsRevive she has seen how beneficial the arts can be to the community in various ways.

“Selma has a lot of potential for art regardless of the medium,” Smith said. “The spectrum is really large.”

ArtsRevive executive director Becky Youngblood said Smith brings a lot of dedication to her role. She said Smith is always there when the organization needs her.

“[Smith] has given so many hours of her time to ArtsRevive,” she said. “She’s just a wonderful, happy human. She’s always volunteering herself to help others. She’s always the first person to volunteer to help when we ask for help,” Youngblood said.

In addition to her community involvement with ArtsRevive and Habitat for Humanity, Smith has been involved with several other organizations. In the past, she has been a girl scout leader for juniors as well as the cadets and a tutor at Byrd School. She is also a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. where she has volunteered with both the organization’s Delta GEMS and Delta Academy.

“She’s really just a jack of all trades,” Youngblood said.

Smith said her involvement in those organizations wasn’t for special recognition, but to give back to the community. She believes that by giving back to your own community first, you can then branch out and serve others as well.

“Charity starts at home,” Smith said.