In 2015, enhanced Environmental Protection Agency controls on the emission of mercury led to Rocky Mountain Power deciding to shutdown the Carbon power plant which was located in Helper. This marked a turning point for the town, with a major source of employment shutting down, it seemed like the end was near.

However, the resiliency of the citizens of Helper was displayed in full force, with several groups working to revitalize the town. One of those groups was The Helper Project.

Castle Country Radio sat down with Keith Bateman from The Helper Project to talk about the organization and its upcoming Giving Exhibition art show.

Opening our conversation, Bateman described what the purpose of the Helper Project is. “The Helper Project was founded about seven or eight years ago by Ann and Roy Jesperson. They formed it initially to focus on the historic preservation of buildings. But over the years it evolved to where we are doing all kinds of things.”

One of those other things that the organization does is scholarships. These aren’t just for the children of Helper, but the children of Carbon County as a whole. Bateman explained that in the past year, the organization gave out 22 scholarships valuing over $50,000

We then dove into an upcoming event for the Helper Project, which takes place on Saturday, Oct. 5.

“This year the Helper Project is acting as an art gallery. We’re going to have about 40 different artists both from Helper and all around the state.” Bateman continued,” And the thing about a lot of these artists is that they’re not just famous locally, but nationally and in some cases internationally.”

Closing out our conversation, Bateman wanted to remind people of the importance of giving back to the community. “ Make sure whatever you’re doing is for the good of the community and giving back.”

*This is part one of a multipart interview series with the Helper Project and the Giving Exhibition.*