While some were planning for their July 4th holiday barbecues and gatherings recently, there were a handful of community members exercising a patriotic duty of another sort.

What did they all have in common? Each responded to the call to serve as a juror. Among that group, I filled the duty as a first-timer in district court.

It's unfortunate that increasingly large numbers of citizens fail to respond to the invitation to exercise one of their most critical duties — jury service. Serving as a juror is an opportunity to re-connect with our Constitution and its noble principles.

While reading up on the subject, I found that prior to the founding of our country, the British Parliament denied colonists the right to a trial by jury. A judge alone decided guilt or innocence, and upon a guilty finding, he would receive a portion of the fine assessed. To the colonists, the actions of the British threatened their liberty, justifying separation from their mother country and creation of a government that would zealously protect the right to trial by jury.

Shortly before the War for Independence, John Adams stated, “Representative government and trial by jury are the heart and lungs of liberty. Without them we have no other fortification against being ridden like horses, fleeced like sheep, worked like cattle and fed and clothed like swine and hounds.”

The Preamble to the Constitution calls upon each of us to directly participate in our governance by serving on a jury. Twelve ordinary citizens apply the “We the People” principle by “establishing justice,” “insur(ing) domestic tranquility,” “promot(ing) the general welfare,” and “secur(ing) the blessings of liberty.”

In many nations, there is no right to a trial by a jury of one's peers. In America, we are blessed in that we have the right to a court-appointed lawyer, the right to remain silent, the right to open public jury trials and many other rights given to anyone charged with a crime.

A commentary by columnist Michael Evans states the founders carefully crafted the right to a jury trial as the supreme law of the land (Article III: “Trials of all crimes ... shall be by jury”; Sixth Amendment: “In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury”).

The Washington State Constitution emphatically declares “the right of trial by jury shall remain inviolate.” The aim of both constitutions dovetails with Thomas Jefferson’s statement that “trial by jury (is) the only anchor yet imagined by man, which a government can be held to the principles of its constitution.”

Fast forward to today and the receipt of a jury summons in the mail. You may be busy with work, children, family, church, and friends. Serving will be a sacrifice and require accommodation. Thus, it's viewed negatively by many.

While waiting for the selection process, I could overhear groans as several cited ailments and situations while speaking among themselves. It was then and there that I decided that no excuse would come from my lips, and after being chosen, I sprang into action to follow my dutiful directions.

Mind you, it was a one day service and didn't involve excruciating or terrifying testimony. But, one thing I did pick up on was that someone involved in the trial had an outstanding offense for not appearing for, yes – jury duty.

Evans states it is jurors, everyday citizens, who hold the responsibility of protecting individual rights and promoting the common good. Jurors govern directly and uphold shared values — protection of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness – something that made this past Independence Day hold special meaning.

Nancy Hastings is a Daily News staff writer and can be reached at nhastings@hillsdale.net. Follow her on Twitter@nhastingsHDN.