This past summer, I spent the month of May living in Marion, Alabama. Through the University Fellows Experience, I had the opportunity to do service work in the Marion community – a place that is truly like no other. According to every statistic in the book, it is probably not where any students fresh out of college would choose to live, but after getting past what the city looked like on paper, I got to see how incredible Marion really is.  

According to AL.com, Perry County – the county that includes Marion – is the poorest county in Alabama, with 40% of the population living below the poverty line. The population is extremely small, there are only a few places to eat and the nearest grocery store is about 30 minutes away. Yet, living here for a whole month was probably the happiest, most content I’ve ever been in my life. So, I encourage you to look beyond what people say or what the statistics imply and instead decide for yourself how you choose to see the world and this state that has so much to offer.

One day this summer, I was talking with a community member about psychology. He explained to me that in places like Marion, people take care of others and that being lonely isn’t a widely felt condition in a small, community-focused town like this. The resident said he felt like psychology was interesting because, at its core, it’s about people being lonely. People don’t have that feeling in Marion. They’re not lonely; in fact, Marion’s community residents are some of the happiest, most fulfilled people I’ve ever met. Maybe it’s the fact that Marion is a rural community or maybe that it is just a one-of-a-kind place, but either way, Marion truly is special and can help people achieve a personal high level of happiness. 

This is not to say that Marion doesn’t have its struggles just as many other rural, low-income communities do, but there is a certain charm about the place, and that is solely because of the incredible people who live there. Furthermore, Marion’s history is remarkable and has been unjustly overlooked. For instance, the shooting of Jimmie Lee Jackson in front of Zion United Methodist Church was a major catalyst that propelled the Civil Rights Movement into action. What’s sad is that I had never even heard of Jimmy Lee Jackson or Marion until I visited the city. Additionally, Marion was the site of the Lincoln Normal School, which produced several famous graduates, including Civil Rights activists and educators Coretta Scott King and Edythe Scott Bagley. 

The people and history of Marion make it an incredible city to explore. In closing, I want to share a quote about the value of community from Coretta Scott King: “The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members … a heart of grace and a soul generated by love.”