Small Town Charm

I live in an incredible place. 

I got a lot of strange looks from people when I told them I was going to Arkansas for college. Despite the fact that Tulsa is less than an hour and a half to the border of Northwest Arkansas, most people in Northeast Oklahoma find that they have no reason to go further east than Tulsa for anything. I did not even know that my Alma Mater even existed until I was told about it as a Junior in High School, and I had no idea that the Bentonville, AR listed on the back of all the Walmart trucks was anywhere nearby. From what I understand, ten years ago NWA really was just where Walmart's headquarters happened to be located. The last decade has seen the area absolutely flourish. People come here to go to one of the local Universities, or for work at Walmart or another big name company's headquarters. With the addition of a world famous Museum within walking distance of the original Walton Five and Dime storefront, and a great effort from the community, this area is exploding with tourists and young families settling down. It is truly amazing how many people come here for UofA, JBU, or NWACC to get their degree and then decide to stay (or they leave and come back). Northwest Arkansas is a beautiful black hole that sucks people in and won't let them leave (I mean that in the best way possible). 

I happen to live right in between Siloam Springs and Bentonville. 

Siloam Springs is known for its lively downtown, with the picturesque Sager Creek running right between it and John Brown University. It was just named the safest town in Arkansas, and is in the top four of the best Arkansas small town communities. Not to mention JBU is ranked #1 in Best Value among Southern colleges according to the U.S. News and World Report. Crime is low, and so is the rent. Siloam Springs offers homes to buy or rent for a very low cost, which is another good reason to stick around and raise a family.The population since 2000 has grown 44.6%, so we must be doing something right!

Siloam Springs

I had the great privilege to work in Bentonville for a year. It was a wonderful place to work. A short drive to restaurants and fast food, a walking distance to cafes, restaurants, and food stands. Unlike many downtowns the Bentonville Square is always bustling and there are always events going on such as First Friday, and the Farmer's Market (among many other things!) There are things to do for kids, adults, food connoisseurs, art geeks, business trips, and tourists. The neat thing about Bentonville is that it does all this, but still keeps its small town charm. Since the year 2000, Bentonville's population has grown 94% (according to a 2012 census). Part of that may encompass enlarging its borders over small towns nearby, but it is easy to see just in the last 2 years that it has absolutely exploded. People love living here. Myself included. I should also mention the lovely town of Rogers which is connected to Bentonville. This classy place fulfills all of your shopping needs with its outdoor mall and surrounding shopping centers. With the installment of the new Arkansas Music Pavilion (AMP), you know this place is hoppin'.

Bentonville

I think the thing I love most about living in this area is the community. We are southern enough that everyone around here is so welcoming and gives off that southern hospitality, but we are far enough north that we see a lot of business culture and entrepreneurship (just going off of stereotypes here). You could have lived here for a month and everyone will make you feel like you have been a part of the community for your entire life. With endless walking/ hiking/ biking trails, rivers, rafting, camping, and caving, if you are an outdoorsman this is the place for you! If you are interested in business, you will find many of the nations biggest companies have headquarters here. There are so few places that offer the small town charm and big city resources like we do here. What more could you ask for?

As I mentioned near the beginning of this post, I live right in-between these two awesome places. If you were to visit me, you might fly into XNA, our commercial airport, or drive on a beautiful two-lane highway lined with forests full of lush green trees, fields of horses or cows, old barns right out of a photograph, or big, round, golden haybales lit-up by the evening sun.