I think if you asked most people what their most valuable asset is they would say their family and in particular, their children or grandchildren.

There is nothing in this world like being a parent. I have found that being a father is the most rewarding blessing I have ever had.

Most of us would agree that we want the best for our children and grandchildren. And what comes with that is a community where our children and grandchildren can grow up and raise their own families, be blessed and prosperous.

In order for a community to thrive, education plays a key ingredient. In order for education to thrive, our children must be placed in safe, secure and stable environments.

If you read the two stories The Vicksburg Post published Sunday in regard to the environments children in our public schools are required to grow up and thrive in, you would have to agree that standard of education is not being met.

I came to Vicksburg from a community in Oxford and Lafayette County where the priority of education is first and foremost. The school systems in the fastest growing county in the state are bursting at the seams and the need for new facilities has become crucial. The school districts have recently passed school facility bonds to meet that demand by overwhelming margins.

Education is a priority in that community.

If Vicksburg and Warren County want to compete with the likes of Oxford, Clinton, the Coast and other thriving areas of Mississippi, education must become a priority.

I was amazed to learn this community has not even voted on a school bond measure since the 1960s. The 1960s! No wonder facilities within the school district are in the shape they’re in.

We can do a lot better.

Our school district continues to make great strides in the area of education and is on the verge of improving even more, but now is the time for our community to show we are with our educators and students in supporting and encouraging them to become great.

Our community has an opportunity to make the future better for our children and grandchildren and their children by approving the school bond on March 27. People can argue all day long about the current state of our school facilities and how they got to this point, but there’s no denying their condition is deplorable to the point they must be repaired now.

History will look back on this moment and judge us on what commitment we had as a community towards education.

The future of the next generation depends upon what we as a community do now.

Rob Sigler is editor of The Vicksburg Post. Readers are invited to submit their opinions for publication.