Dr. William Downs

There's an old saying, "home is where the heart is," and my heart is in Arkadelphia. On the water tower, it says, "Arkadelphia is a great place to call home."  And it is.  I taught here for 44 years as chairman of the mass communications department.  When it came time to retire, Arkadelphia had so much to offer that I didn't have to leave.

My wife and her sister have a beautiful bed and breakfast here, and that keeps them busy. I teach a men's Bible study at church and write a weekly newspaper column on important public issues.  And now I'm working on a book featuring over one hundred stories of survival, stories of farmers of the Great Depression. When I retired, my wife said, 'You've reinvented yourself.'   I guess I never really stopped doing what I love. 

Our local resources are top-notch.  We have an unusually superior, state of the art health facility in Baptist Health and our medical teams are dedicated to keeping people healthy.  The recreational opportunities here are amazing.  Lake DeGray is beautiful, pristine.  No housing is allowed to be built on the shores.  It has all the water sports and a great state park lodge.  It also has a PGA approved 18-hole golf course that demands your best.  We also have two rivers and a really nice aquatic park - when my grandkids come down, Pops can take them swimming.  And we have a walking trail, with gorgeous trees rising to the sky.  Retirees, keep these things in mind.  The only diamond mine in America is thirty miles away.  We have the airport close, and the AmTrack available.  We love to travel, but it's always nice to come home.

I have a very full life. Arkadelphia is the kind of town where you can be yourself.  One person can make a difference, if they want to.