Good things come to those who wait. That’s the way the old saying goes. But it’s only partially true in that it suggests the recipient of the good things doesn’t have to actually do much work, merely exercise patience.

In reality, often the quality of something is tied heavily to the work and craftsmanship put into it.

This morning, I hope each of you who receive our printed edition enjoy the fruits of many long hours by The Democrat’s staff.

Today we publish our Profile 2015 edition.

At 132 pages, it’s among our largest Profile sections ever.

Profile is among my favorite sections that we do because in some ways Profile is a test for our team.

If we plan well, work hard and stay organized, Profile usually gets published without a hitch. If we don’t, the large size of the section can make it turn into a nightmare to produce.

I’m proud to say that this year’s effort went smoothly and the two dozen or so people who have a direct hand in producing Profile did a superb job and the result is an impressive section.

This year marks my 17th Profile section at The Democrat. Lord knows not all of them have been as successful, mostly because from time to time our staff simply fails to start working on the section soon enough or simply doesn’t map out a plan and stick to it.

Groups — whether a newspaper team or a community or even a region — can often establish their own futures, if they choose to make a plan.

That is, in part, what led our staff to come up with the theme for this year’s Profile section — Charting Our Course: Navigating the future with an eye on our past.

Clearly, the area’s history continues to influence the area in key ways. We are who we are because of our history and shying away from that gets us nowhere.

But we’re also a community that often pulls in different directions — unnecessarily.

Imagine what would happen if civic and community leaders could somehow set their differences aside for a short period of time and map out a master plan for our community’s future.

What would the plan include and how would the plan be implemented?

It’s always been fascinating to me to ask children questions about the way things should be in the world. They often come at problems with openness and an imagination that somehow gets squeezed out of most of us when we start earning a paycheck and paying taxes.

What direction are Natchez, Adams County, Vidalia and the surrounding area heading?

Is the trajectory headed up — toward improving its position — or headed down?

If the latter, some imagination and cooperation may allow an improvement plan to be forged quickly.

Sometimes, our community is still fighting battles with age-old foes of race, economic disparity and regional squabbling.

But glimmers of hope exist. Inside Profile, you’ll find some inspiring stories about people in the community who are quietly working to make a difference. Stories of people such as the volunteers with Mission Mississippi are inspiring. The volunteers bring together people of different races to simply talk through their differences and build bonds.

Imagine if more of our community worked hard to come together rather than pick each other apart. The course on which we’d find ourselves as a community would be a far more productive one for sure.

I hope you like Profile 2015. Please let me know as your feedback is always appreciated.

 

Kevin Cooper is publisher of The Natchez Democrat. He can be reached at 601-445-3539 or kevin.cooper@natchezdemocrat.com.