HEBER SPRINGS, Ark. (KTHV) - In Heber Springs, when you take the road to a better community you take the scenic route, because more often than not you will wind up at Greers Ferry Lake, where you'll find a monument that created a movement.
Before 2013, you wouldn't see a lifeguard at Sandy Beach, but there was a day that when Barbara Owens made her son stay home and do chores while a friend went alone to the lake.
Barbara knew from reading Facebook posts that the young people were grieving her son's friend's death.
"It really terrified me as a parent. I worried about my own son. I knew that I needed to do something," she says.
That something turned into the lifeguard stand with the help from some of the Heber Springs High School students. The students, however, were just getting started.
For three years now, they have been responsible for 'Movies at the Beach'.
The bigger picture is more than the movies. They've mentored, staged benefit concerts, provided storm relief and for the last two years have undertaken an intense anti-bullying campaign.
"I was raised where you should always be courteous. You should always be nice to other people and you should never like bring people lower than yourself and I don't like it when I see people doing that," one student said.
It has been a banner year for Teen Recruiters. Their numbers have grown and the community has responded. Along the way, they have learned valuable life lessons.
The chair on Sandy Beach has produced a lot of lifeguards.