21 Dec 2012 A patriotic spirit
Story and photo by Janna Virden
Susan Henderson likes to fly under the radar but she couldn’t escape the attention when chosen as the Morrilton Area Chamber of Commerce Outstanding Citizen of the Year for 2012.
Henderson was honored at the 85th annual chamber banquet in November for her work in creating and coordinating the annual Fabulous Fourth celebration held at Cherokee Park overlooking the Arkansas River.
“I used to spend summers on Petit Jean Mountain and watched the fireworks up there, but when I moved back I found out there was no Fourth of July fireworks anymore,” said Henderson, who moved to Morrilton in 1996 to help her parents in their real estate business.
That is when Henderson went to work. In 1999, the first Fabulous Fourth celebration took place. The event, which is free to the public, has everything – live music, games, hot dogs, watermelon and, of course, fireworks. It has grown every year since its inception.
In 2012 one of the worst droughts on record was in full swing when the Fourth of July rolled around. When other fireworks shows were being cancelled across the state and individuals were being told not to even buy fireworks, let alone light them, Henderson managed to get the Fabulous Fourth sanctioned, and a record crowd of 17,000 showed up to celebrate.
Henderson has about 75 donors and 75 people who volunteer their time and energy to make the event happen. “It is done without formal meetings,” she said. “Everybody has their assignment, and they get the job done.”
While Henderson is known mostly for her work with the Fabulous Fourth celebration, she is active in many other areas in the community. She is a patron of the arts and helped organize wine tastings to benefit the Arts Council of Conway County. Henderson was also instrumental in creating a pocket park in Downtown Morrilton that was previously an empty lot between two buildings. The small park is adorned with murals depicting scenes from Conway County. The murals are unique. They are not painted on the sides of buildings, but are painted on doors and mounted on the side of a building. This way they can be changed in the future. Henderson said she was on vacation and saw a door museum. She brought the idea home.
“I love that our downtown promotes the arts,” she said.
Henderson is a member of the Morrilton Lions Club. She believes they are one of the hardest working clubs in the Morrilton area. “We give back and still have a blast. We like to be hands on.”
Henderson is also a member of the Arkansas Realtors Association and serves on its Professional Standards Committee. She is a member of the Conway and Perry counties realtors association and a member of the Morrilton Area Chamber of Commerce and the Perry County Area Chamber of Commerce.
Henderson now runs her family business, Petit Jean Properties. She said she learned a lot from her parents and used her background in business to make it “smarter not harder.” By using this application, she sees less burnout in her agents. Running a business can be complicated, but one aspect that makes it easier is that Henderson believes in her community.
“I don’t really sell houses,” she said. “I sell our community.”
