As a member of the Miss-Lou Steering Committee, I am honored to work with the public and private sectors of Concordia Parish and Natchez-Adams County to further the community and economic development efforts of our region.

Our communities have grown, each in its own unique way, but now it’s time for our region to grow from the foundations established by each community.

Each community has something the other doesn’t — Natchez and Ferriday have true downtowns and Vidalia doesn’t; Natchez and Vidalia have the Mississippi River and Ferriday doesn’t; Vidalia and Ferriday have thousands of acres of flatland and Natchez doesn’t. But together we all have downtowns, the river and flatland.

The Miss-Lou Steering Committee is ready to promote the region as one and we recognize that we cannot do it alone. But, with the continued support from the entire Miss-Lou community we will be able to grow and prosper as one.

It’s one thing to have a regional vision; it’s another to see the vision through until it becomes a reality. We, as a region, have tried many times to focus on regionalism, but this is the first time, since I’ve been in office, that I’ve seen us mold our regional vision into reality.

The public sector and the private businesses that sit around the table each month have really taken an interest in promoting the Miss-Lou as one community instead of two, three or four separate communities.

As we join together and continue to work hard to make our economic situation even better, we are counting on the input from you — the community. I urge each and every one of you to share your concerns and ideas for a regional future because the decisions we make today will impact your children and your children’s children.

The Miss-Lou Steering Committee is providing three opportunities for the public to be heard.

Please be sure to join us for at least one of these forums:

4At noon Tuesday, a luncheon will be at the Bryant Hammett Conference and Convention Center.

4At 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 23, a breakfast will be at the Ferriday Arcade.

4At 5:30 p.m. Thursday, March 11, the Natchez Community Center will host an after-hours.

I look forward to hearing and discussing your regional thoughts in the upcoming months.

Hyram Copeland is the mayor of the City of Vidalia.