While most of us hid in the warmth and comfort of our homes over the past week, some of the county’s most valuable assets were already out in full force, sometimes in the wee hours of the morning and into the late evening hours, on slick and snow-covered country roads and waist deep in water despite frigid temperatures.

Our city and county road crews are often out as early as 3 a.m. salting and plowing roads so they are safe and passable by time many in the county to get out and about.

These crews battle frigid temperatures and dangerous roads so we don’t have to. Thankfully this week’s winter weather didn’t offer up the six inches forecasted at times, but roads were still slick and conditions were less than optimal.

Every year when winter weather hits, we count on these “behind-the-scenes” crews to make our county run. And they’re not the only ones.

Think for a second about all the people who work to keep our city and county running smoothly and in good shape throughout the year.

Just as our snow-covered roads need to be cleared, downed power lines need repaired and burst water mains need to be fixed. Besides these emergency situations, we are lucky enough to have people who keep our parks clean, our leaves off the streets and our public buildings presentable.

These are often thankless jobs, but we want to take the opportunity to thank the men and women, whether mentioned here or not, who keep Clark County running.

Can you imagine what our county would be like without these people?

From our emergency responders and our elected officials, to our city and county employees and the utilities companies, thanks for all you do to make Winchester and Clark County a great place to live.