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Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area to Host Community Forums May 14-15

By April 19, 2012General

Dr. Luther BrownExploring the stories of the Mississippi Delta’s culture and heritage and identifying important places where these stories can be told is the focus of three community forums set for May 14 and 15.

The Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area will host community forums in Vicksburg, Greenville and Clarksdale that are open to anyone interested in the region’s heritage. The meetings are part of a two-year planning process to develop a management plan for the 18-county National Heritage Area.

Meetings will be held at the following times and locations:

  • Vicksburg – Monday, May 14 – 6:00 – 9:00 p.m. – Vicksburg National Military Park, 3201 Clay Street, auditorium

The meeting in Vicksburg will be preceded by a presentation and special announcement by John Hildreth, vice president of Eastern Field Service for the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

  • Greenville – Tuesday, May 15 – 10:00 a.m. – Noon – Greenville Higher Education Center, 2900A  Highway 1 South

 

  • Clarksdale – Tuesday, May 15 – 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. – Clarksdale Bus Station, 1540 DeSoto Avenue

“The Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area was designated by Congress in recognition of the region’s unique culture that has influenced the nation in many ways including civil rights, blues music, literature, arts and culinary traditions,” said Luther Brown, director of the Delta Center for Culture and Learning at Delta State University in Cleveland and manager of the National Heritage Area. “The goal of a National Heritage Area is to create a community-driven network to support historic preservation, natural resource conservation, recreation, heritage tourism and educational projects. By working together, we can support sustainable economic development through heritage conservation and help build community pride.”

A management plan will be developed by a team led by the National Trust for Historic Preservation which includes some of the country’s top experts in preserving and interpreting heritage and in heritage tourism.  The team includes both current and former managers of National Heritage Areas as well as planners who have successfully helped other regions benefit from their own heritage.

“A critical part of developing a management plan is to invite residents throughout the region to share their thoughts and ideas about what they would like the National Heritage Area to do – and how they could be involved – in the next decade,” said Brown.

Representatives from the planning team will facilitate the community forums. The meetings will include a presentation on the process and timeline for developing the management plan as well as an overview of the purpose of National Heritage Areas and success stories from other National Heritage Areas across the country.

Participants will have the opportunity to work in groups to discuss what they see as the important stories and places in the Mississippi Delta that should be included in the management plan. Future community forums will build on these discussions to identify strategies for preserving important places and sharing the Mississippi Delta’s stories. The management plan, scheduled for completion in December 2013, will provide guidance to manage, preserve and share the Mississippi Delta’s culture and heritage with residents and visitors.

Reservations are not required. For more information, contact Luther Brown at 662-846-4311.
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As authorized by Congress in 2009, the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area includes 18 counties – Bolivar, Carroll, Coahoma, DeSoto, Holmes, Humphreys, Issaquena, Leflore, Panola, Quitman, Sharkey, Sunflower, Tallahatchie, Tate, Tunica, Warren, Washington and Yazoo. The Delta Center for Learning and Culture at Delta State University in Cleveland is the program manager for the management planning phase. The Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area is governed by a board of directors representing agencies and organizations defined in the Congressional legislation. For more information, visit www.blueshighway.org.