Fred Falkenheiner, a Concordia Parish leader for 30 years, was the unanimous choice for this year’s Natchez Democrat Citizen of Year Award. And he couldn’t be more deserving.

Matter of fact, he was such a strong candidate that someone suggested we go ahead and name him the winner for next year … just to make sure the weight of his achievements in community leadership could be adequately recognized. Falkenheiner served 30 years on the parish’s police jury, 12 as its president. Those who worked alongside him applaud his level-headed approach to getting things done and a long list of accomplishments that came as a result.

Also deserving of recognition are Democrat Unsung Heroes Lamar Felter Sr., Kay Nunn, Sandra Freeman, Sister Loretta Parpart, Dr. Robert Lee Smith, Sharon Browning and Jerry Richardson who, without seeking recognition, go above and beyond the call of duty each day to make our community a better place.

That said, there’s another group of unsung heroes that comes to mind this time of year — the group of more than 100 Democrat employees and independently contracted newspaper carriers who deliver the news of our community to you every day and team up to produce and deliver our annual Profile edition. Profile, our community’s &uot;annual report,&uot; published each February by The Democrat, is not just another project our employees focus on in February. It is the product of months of preparation, attention to literally thousands of small details and the occasional minor miracle.

Profile chronicles the events, people and places that make our community special. A tradition that started here in the early 1970s, the project has earned nationwide attention and recognition. It has served as a prototype for similar efforts throughout the country. And it truly is one of the best news products of its kind anywhere.

This year is no exception. Proof of that came recently with results from the National Newspaper Association’s annual Better Newspaper Contest. In a competition where all daily newspapers in the country, large and small, must compete in the same division, our employees’ work was once again recognized as the best of the best.

You can imagine how excited our employees were to find out that in the competition’s Best Special Issue category, sandwiched between winners from major daily newspapers were the words &uot;Second Place — The Natchez (MS) Democrat, Profile.&uot;

With hundreds of stories and photographs, hundreds of advertising messages and countless nuggets of information about your friends, neighbors and business associates, we think this year’s installment will also be judged among the best we have ever produced.

And that’s a tribute to dedicated folks who made it happen. From The Democrat management team who helped plan and execute the work of the section to the newspaper carriers who delivered the edition to your front door the list of heroes is a long one.

In between, our sales staff worked with advertisers to help bring their message to you. Our business office employees kept track of an endless stream of Profile related data. Our graphics team added ingenuity and flair to the design of each advertisement. Our reporters and photographers worked hard to tell the stories of our community. Our press and inserting staff burned the midnight oil to see that the results of all that work made it to paper in time to be delivered to your door by 7 a.m.

It takes a strong, committed team to juggle the responsibilities of Profile along with the day-to-day challenge of producing a top quality daily newspaper. And our team has proven once again that they are equal to the task. I’m proud of what they accomplished.

We heard lots of good feedback from you as well. We appreciate you telling us what you think because we are already looking for ways to improve as we prepare for Profile ’01.

Todd Carpenter is publisher of The Democrat. He can be reached by calling 446-5172, ext. 218 or by e-mail at todd.carpenter@natchezdemocrat.com.