The people of the Miss-Lou never cease to be amazing.

Superheroes in their own right, dozens of local residents go out of their way to do so much good for others that it often becomes difficult to even keep track of the good deeds, especially when you are dealing with a breed of folks who never seek out attention for themselves.

Each year, I’m blessed to meet and get to know another batch of what we call “unsung heroes.” They are the people of our community making a difference in the world around them.

But the process of finding these heroes is something I love just as much as meeting them.

The newspaper relies on the community to shine the spotlight on those among us who work hard to avoid it. You see, these folks prefer to stay behind the scenes, which means that often we don’t even know who they are.

But you do.

It’s the man at church who always comes by to make sure your grass is cut, the pilot light is on and the wood is chopped.

It’s the lady down the street who takes a morning stroll just to pick up trash in the neighborhood.

Or it’s the volunteers who make community projects happen.

Last year, we met nine new heroes, all with their own great story.

One of my favorites was Mrs. Dorothy Champ who was 88 at that time.

Still driving, grocery shopping and even checking on folks 10 years her junior, Mrs. Champ has a passion for helping sick children and their families. Without a medical degree and a million dollars in hand, Mrs. Champ began doing what she could to help those at Ronald McDonald House — a place where the families of children receiving treatment at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital can stay for free.

The end result was 352,000 soft drink tabs, delivered to the out-of-town hospital by Mrs. Champ herself, that the house could turn into cash.

I can only hope I’ll be as able and willing to help others when I reach Mrs. Champ’s age.

Now, it’s time to find another set of unsung heroes, but we need your help.

It’s impossible for one person to know all the good others in town are doing, but if we work together as a community we can highlight the works of some very deserving people, perhaps inspiring others to follow their lead.

Think about those around you who have made a difference in the last year.

Then, write or type a few sentences or paragraphs about the person, sharing exactly what it is they do to make our community a better place.

Send your nominations to: unsungheroes@natchezdemocrat.com or Unsung Heroes, The Natchez Democrat, P.O. Box 1447, Natchez, MS, 39121.

You can also drop a written nomination by at our 503 N. Canal Street office.

If you’d like for your identity to remain unknown to the person you nominate, just say so, but I would like you to include your name and phone number in case I have a question for you.

And if you have a contact phone number for the person you are nominating, please include that as well.

We will accept nominations until Feb. 11.

Then, our staff will work to narrow down the list to those among the most deserving.

I’ll contact the chosen ones and let them know their secret is out.

We will publish a special section honoring our community heroes of 2011 on Sunday, Feb. 27. This community is amazing; let’s celebrate it.

Julie Cooper is the managing editor of The Natchez Democrat. She can be reached at 601-445-3551 or julie.cooper@natchezdemocrat.com.