In an effort to foster a new relationship between the two cities, community leaders from Selma visited Cullman Thursday to tour the area and visit with their local counterparts.

The visit came about due to the friendship between Cullman’s state senator, Garlan Gudger, and Selma’s, Melika Sanders-Fortier.

Gudger said he struck up a friendship with Sanders-Fortier in Montgomery, as the two were both freshmen senators who were looking to work across party lines to help each other’s communities.

“She and I seem to be able to work together and communicate even though we disagree on some topics, and we’re still, at the end of the day, friends and God-fearing people,” he said.

Gudger said he went to Selma earlier this year to speak at the city’s Martin Luther King Day ceremony, and he invited Sanders-Fortier and some of the city’s leaders to make the trip to Cullman to build a better relationship between the cities.

“Part of what I wanted to do is bring her and bring our two communities together,” he said. “With the folklore of Cullman’s past and the civil rights history of her community’s past, bringing these two communities together is the right thing to do.”

Gudger said the visitors from Selma got a good look at the city and county during their tour on Thursday, which included some of the area’s industries and recreational areas.

“I think they were impressed and had a great day yesterday,” he said. “We showed them everything from industrial sites, some parks and rec to just a little bit of everything.”

Cullman and Selma have things that they can offer each other, and strengthening the bonds between the cities can only serve to benefit them both, Gudger said.

“I think they can benefit a lot from aspects that we have that are strong, and we can benefit a lot from the aspects that they have,” he said.

While the relationship between Cullman and Selma is just getting off the ground, Gudger said he expects a group of Cullman representatives to make a similar visit to Selma in the future and would like to see the the relationship continue.

“Our goal is to see what our future holds and how we can benefit from working together,” he said.