Most communities from our county have chosen to participate in this year&8217;s sales tax holiday, to be held Aug. 1-3. We have to thank those communities, including Alabaster, Calera, Columbiana, Helena, Hoover Montevallo, Pelham and Wilsonville.

Residents in those communities will be able to save a little money both at the register and at the gas pump because they will be able to get tax breaks while helping the economy in their hometowns. While we wait out these troubled economic times, a bit of extra cash in hand can sometimes go a long way.

We understand the decisions of those communities that chose not to participate, such as Chelsea, Westover, Vincent, Wilton and Harpersville. Westover, Vincent, Wilton and Harpersville are all smaller communities, and for right now, it doesn&8217;t make sense to participate.

We also commend Chelsea for making the decision to donate money to area schools in place of participation. Chelsea&8217;s classrooms will undoubtedly put that money to good use, stocking up on supplies for the upcoming school year.

We have to wonder, though, if Chelsea&8217;s families would have benefited just as much from the sales tax holiday. After all, it seems that we hear about new businesses in Chelsea every week, and some of those businesses could have gotten an early push in the right direction from the sales tax holiday.

Also, those families will have to choose where to spend their money: at home, with no tax break, or at the gas pump when they drive to other communities to buy their school supplies that weekend.

In our country, the dollar is quickly losing its value just when we need to stretch it as much as possible. We should help our families stretch their dollars instead of choosing how to lose them.