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An editorial opinion of The Lowndes Signal

Storms swept through Alabama on Wednesday, April 10. High winds and heavy rains brought with them the usual, the impacts rural communities have come to expect — downed trees, debris in yards and roadways and power outages.

Immediately after the worst was over, Pioneer Electric reported widespread outages, 2,800 across in Butler, Lowndes and Dallas counties. A few of the highest-concentration outage areas were in north and northwest Lowndes County.

A blown transformer took out power near Glenwood and volunteers responded to a house fire in Rutledge while downed trees blocked several Brantley roads. Residents reported outages on social media, in Greenville, Georgiana and McKenize in Butler County. 

And, while everyone’s inclination is to hunker down in severe weather, volunteers, neighbors, neighbors and emergency responders answered the call, helping where help was needed to clear roads, remove debris, put out fires and restore power.

Dale Shepherd was recently awarded the Crenshaw County Citizen of the Year. At the awards banquets, she was quoted as saying, “In a small town, you just help.”

Shepherd was honored for her service to others because she understands what small-town residents hold as a high and noble calling — service above self.

Many, who also understand help must be offered when needed most, responded after recent storms as they have many times before, to restore peace after the storm.

We applaud those selfless individuals who put their own comfort secondary to the needs of their neighbors because, in a small town, you just help.