Was there ever a spring more anticipated than this one? It's been a long, cold, overly-snowy winter and we're all feeling a new sense of energy as the temperatures climb, the daylight lasts a little longer, and flowers and buds begin appearing.

Many of us turn that energy towards our homes in the spring and summer. We've spent the winter planning and making lists of what needs to be updated, repaired, renewed.

In this week's issue of The Citizen there is a special section focusing on spring home improvement. In a few weeks, we'll spread that focus to lawns and gardens. The special sections offer some ideas, some advice, and our supported by local businesses that perform home improvement work.

That's the important part. These are local businesses, local residents in many cases. They are members of our community, volunteers who contribute their time and money to local efforts.

There are any number of businesses that perform this same work. But when you hire a local contractor, it benefits you in more ways than one. Not only do you get the work done, often at a lower price than you would get elsewhere, but your money circles right around the community to come back to you. These contractors patronize local businesses, who patronize other local businesses, and everybody in the circle pays taxes that end up funding your police department and paving your streets.

So when you need some help around the house, invest in local people, who will invest in us.