Tennessee is known as the "Volunteer State."

However, Barnwell County might be considered the "Volunteer County."

A lot of volunteers have invested time and sweat equity into the county recently.

Dozens of people volunteered April 24 in the annual "Day of Caring" coordinated by the Barnwell County United Way. These volunteers painted; built wheelchair ramps; made home improvements; painted and did minor to moderate repairs at public service offices and the private homes of those who are infirmed or less fortunate. Many of these volunteers are Savannah River Site employees.

Jessie Ortiz, a Barnwell County government employee, has donated his time as a Spanish translator for the Barnwell County Detention Center. For his efforts, the S.C. Jail Administrators Association named him its volunteer of the year.

Volunteers helped reclaim a community cemetery in Blackville from the woods where weeds and undergrowth had obscured the fact that there was even a graveyard in the town. Some of these volunteers have ancestors buried there.

Hundreds of people found volunteering a fun activity as they cooked, entertained and otherwise worked toward the overall goal of raising money through Relay For Life for cancer research for the American Cancer Society.

How many other volunteers aren't as visible in the county as they help struggling students through after-school programs; tend to nursing home patients or hospice clients? Often their best tools for volunteering are listening ears, sympathetic hugs or time spent with an otherwise lonely person.

Yet as much as nursing homes and hospices benefit from volunteers, the tasks they have usually exceed the number of hands available. In this newspaper, there is regularly Community Calendar notices where organizations are calling for more helping hands.

Charitable work doesn't always mean one needs to reach for their checkbook for a donation.

In fact, now in these tough economic times, people are relearning a vital lesson - volunteerism often doesn't mean money - in means an investment of a more valuable commodity: our hearts and our hands.

To all these volunteers - seen and unseen - we say "thank you" for the jobs you are doing.

What's the job?

Why, improving the county overall.

Thank you again for jobs well done.

Keep up the good works - for actions still speak louder than words.