State Budget Cuts Threaten Heritage Officer Program
A Special Letter from The Blue Ridge National Heritage Area
June 12, 2009
Dear Heritage Partners,
We have just become aware that the North Carolina state budget passed by the North Carolina House Tuesday night would eliminate all but one of the Heritage Development Officer (otherwise known as Tourism Development Officer) positions in Western North Carolina (“Western North Carolina” being defined as everything west of Interstate 77).
We currently have five Heritage Development Officers in the 25-county Blue Ridge National Heritage Area region: Helen Ruth Almond, Leesa Brandon, Frankie McWhorter, Kaye Meyers, and Tom Holder. Another position, which was originally filled by Ron Ruehl and later by Jerry Tate, has been vacant for all of 2009.
These people are absolutely essential to the operations of the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area. The BRNHA has only four full-time staff members, and the Heritage Development Officers are our representatives “on the ground” in our 25 counties. They are the ones who have their fingers on the pulse of all the heritage and tourism initiatives that have made such a difference in the Heritage Area in the last 5 years.
Without them we could not operate our grants program or provide assistance to the 26 heritage councils that we serve. Their loss would be a crippling blow to the BRNHA, our partners, and would undo much of the progress that has been made in heritage preservation, interpretation and development as a result of BRNHA programs and grants.
Click here to read a summary of the proposed cuts. (This is a large file and will take some time to open.)
Go to page 14, item 64. If you share our concern, we urge you to contact your state House and Senate members IMMEDIATELY and let them know how important these Heritage Development Officers are to you, and how adversely their loss would affect heritage preservation AND economic development efforts in our region. Ask them to restore funding for these positions.
Feel free to contact me if you have any questions. Thank you for your help.
Best Wishes,
Penn Dameron
Executive Director
Blue Ridge National Heritage Area
About the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area
The Blue Ridge National Heritage Area, designated by Congress and the President in November 2003, works to protect, preserve, interpret, and develop the unique natural, historical, and cultural resources of Western North Carolina for the benefit of present and future generations, and in so doing to stimulate improved economic opportunity in the region. National Heritage Areas are locally-governed institutions that encourage residents, non-profit groups, government agencies, and private partners to work together in planning and implementing programs that preserve and celebrate America’s defining landscapes.
