To officials of the Surry County Health and Nutrition Center as well as state health officials, who have worked to keep the public informed of the presence of the H1N1 virus in North Carolina and to prepare for potential health-related problems without doing so in an alarmist manner.

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To the Mount Airy Habitat for Humanity organization, and all the volunteers and local businesses who have helped Habitat build homes for local residents. Sunday Habitat held its 21st local home dedication. That’s 21 families with affordable homes they can call their own, all through the generosity of volunteers and area merchants.

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To those who organized and sponsored the dedication of the veterans memorial dedicated at Piney Grove Memorial Church this week. The memorial is a way to honor those who have fallen in military service to America, but it is those who put in the time and resources to erect and maintain the memorials that help keep these fallen soldiers in our thoughts.

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To the Downtown Business Association and area musicians for partnering in a move to have live entertainment scattered throughout downtown on Saturday afternoons. The idea is to give folks another reason to be in Mount Airy, visiting, having fun, and shopping with local merchants. At the same time, local musicians can showcase their talent and hopefully sell a few CDs. It’s a great concept and another example of how local folks are being proactive in finding ways to draw more business to the city.

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To local postal carriers who have added to their workload a bit this week, but for a cause. The carriers are collecting food from postal patrons, then giving the donations to Yokefellow Cooperative Ministry and other area food banks to help area families and individuals who are struggling to keep food on their tables.