Editorial
There’s a reoccurring theme in this issue of The Lawrence Ledger.
It starts with our coverage of the Day of Service Learning at Lawrence High School on Monday. In addition to guest speaker Eleanor Horne’s plea for a more-inclusive community, the event offered both residents and students alike the opportunity to get involved in community service.
We also have a feature on the student organization SOAP, which helped organize the event. The two students that formed the group took the initiative to find unusual ways to assist the community.
There’s also this month’s edition of "Civic Pride," where we look at the goals and future plans of the Eggerts Crossing Civic League. In addition to trying to redevelop their own community, members of this group also organize voter registration drives and help LHS students receive scholarships.
Elsewhere, there’s an article about the Route 206 Commission meeting with an official from the state Department of Transportation. This group, which was formed in 2001, continues to seek out ways to combat truck traffic on Route 206. Hearing from the DOT was another step in that process.
And the Township Council appointed six different residents to five boards and committees on Tuesday night. These six volunteers will help out in areas as diverse as preserving greenways to preventing alcohol abuse.
The common bond in all these stories is a dedication to community service. Some residents were searching for new ways to help; others were already dedicating their time to a worthy cause. In each case, it was people actively involved in the community.
Because Monday was Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, it shouldn’t surprise anyone to see a few items on community service in a local newspaper. But the recurrent examples of it in the Ledger this week show just how many opportunities there are to assist in the Lawrence community.
We are trying to help with our "Civic Pride" series. So far, we have profiled the Lions Club, Rotary Club and now the Eggerts Crossing Civic League. These are all groups providing different services to the Lawrence community. We are trying to identify them, with hope that other residents will get interested and join up.
You can help us as well. If you know of a civic group in Lawrence that we haven’t covered yet, contact Managing Editor Steve Feitl at [email protected] or (609) 466-8650.
This week proved that there’s a lot of people making a difference in Lawrence. As the year moves ahead, we’d like to make sure they’re featured appropriately in the Ledger. In that way, we hope to be doing our part.

