![]() Helena was the original town and West Helena, once part of Helena, separated itself in early twentieth century in a political dispute. ![]() Helen- West Helena, as the name implies, were once two separate communities. By understanding this community, it will help you understand how communities are born, thrive, decline, and die, whether they are a small town, a large city, or even a neighborhood. Helena-West Helena is emblematic of hundreds, perhaps thousands of communities in America that are in similar straits. But passing by these buildings you discover that most have been long abandoned, their display windows vacant, or filled with discarded clothing or long-ago Christmas decorations. On each side of the street sit rows of two story buildings many of which are well over a century old, and from a distance seem quite serviceable. Cherry Street, the five block main street that was once the heart of the town?s small businesses, seems like a deserted movie set. When a visitor enters the community of Helena-West Helena, passing row after row of abandoned stores, closed factories, decaying homes, and empty streets, it is hard to imagine that this was once one of the most vibrant towns in Arkansas. The program presents a portrait of the area as it was in its glory day, a description of how and why it declined, the formation of a plan for recovery by the community in conjunction with Southern Bancorp and the Walton Foundation the efforts of local people to start new businesses including building tourism around the town?s history and tradition of music the troubled and present racial history of the community and the efforts to overcome the devastating effects of poverty through education. They include planters and farmers, businessmen and teachers, high schools and college students, working people and small business owners, community leaders and people trying to escape poverty. Delta Dreams is a story that is told primarily by a cross section of the men and women, young and old, who live in the community.
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