People, especially young people, will often say of their hometown, “There’s never anything to do here.” It’s a pretty common complaint no matter how much evidence there is to the contrary, and for anyone from Vicksburg who has ever uttered those words, take a better look around. There’s a ton going on.

In the final weekend of January alone, Vicksburg celebrated its bicentennial with a full slate of events that culminated in a ball at the BB Club and an afterparty and The Watermark Vicksburg; hundreds were in town for the second iteration of the Beautiful Table Settings Bash Vicksburg; and contestants with the Miss Mississippi and Miss Mississippi’s Teen were in town for orientation. And that was just one weekend!

But, even if none of those particular events tickle your fancy, understand this: The more people visit Vicksburg, the more money flows through our community, creating all sorts of opportunities for growth and maybe more activities that DO tickle your fancy.

As we consider these facts, we all need to be doing our part to help make sure our city remains an attractive and inviting place for visitors to venture. One easy way to do that is to help keep trash off our streets and other public places. Obviously, we can all do our parts by simply not littering; however, those of us who really want to make a difference may do so in a number of ways.

Not only are there community cleanup days several times a year that focus on major arteries throughout town, but there are groups all over town that can work to help keep things clean in the interim. 

During Monday’s meeting of the Board of Mayor and Aldermen, The Exchange Club of Vicksburg stepped up to officially work on upkeep of the green space at the intersection of North Frontage Road and South Washington Street. Mayor George Flaggs Jr. rightly said if just seven or eight groups could come together to work on projects of this nature, it would make a tremendous difference in our city.

Similarly, this year’s Leadership Vicksburg class is working to put together its own version of a community cleanup project. So, there’s number two. Who’s going to be number three?

We all live here in the River City and, whether you enjoy the events around town or not, keeping them coming will keep the revenue flowing and bolster even more events and happenings around town. A rising tide lifts all ships, so let’s do our part to keep Vicksburg bringing in the people and events.