America runs on volunteers. So does Rowan County.

Think of it. Millions of people across the country regularly volunteer at churches, schools, soup kitchens, athletic fields, hospitals — any place where helping hands are needed.

They donate blood, rescue animals, give tours and raise funds.

They are reading tutors, Scout leaders, baseball coaches and running buddies.

They build new homes, restore old ones and fight fires.

They stock food pantries, deliver Meals on Wheels and pack book bags with food.

They mentor youths, counsel prison inmates and advocate for victims.

The list goes on and on — so much so that the people who roll up their sleeves to do all this work hardly have time to notice that this is National Volunteer Week. The Salisbury Post is taking note by publishing a story each day about local volunteers — ordinary people helping the community in their own extraordinary way.

Collectively, Americans volunteer some 5 million hours a year, according to Points of Light, a private, nonprofit organization launched by former President George H.W. Bush to support volunteerism. More than once, Bush likened the nation’s clubs and volunteer groups to “a thousand points of light,” spread across the country like stars in the sky.

Rowan County easily has its own thousand points of light when you consider all the ways people give their time to worthy causes. Hundreds fan out across the county for United Way’s Day of Caring. All year long, from hammering nails at Habitat houses to teaching adults to read at the Literacy Council, volunteers find countless ways to improve the community.

Volunteer Week is a good time to thank the people who generously donate their time and energy, and to encourage others to give it a try. Business and industry drive the economy, but what a soulless place this would be without people who see a need and say, “How can I help?”