Film could soon start rolling in Sallisaw if the city is chosen for The Learning Channel's (TLC) television series "Town Haul."
Melissa Maugeri, a location scout for the show, toured Sallisaw Saturday, interviewing residents, getting ideas for a possible show in Sallisaw, and creating a tape to pitch to show executives.
About 70 people attended a community meeting at 8 a.m. Saturday to hear the details of the show and what the show is looking for in a town. Sallisaw is just one of the stops through a "four-state area of the heartland" as location scouts look for the next town bound for the spotlight.
According to TLC's Web site, the premise of the series is to travel through small-town America and help communities create change while their community improvement efforts are aired on television.
The Sallisaw Chamber of Commerce was contacted Thursday by TLC about the possibility of Sallisaw being chosen. Maugeri said there isn't a specific number of towns on the possible filming list, and each town they travel through could become a prospect.
Two other towns have been featured on the show, including Jeffersonville, N.Y., and Laurens, S.C.
Through six hour-long episodes, the "Town Haul" team works on projects with residents throughout a town. Maugeri said the show tries to help empower a community to move into the direction they want to go.
Maugeri said the show has tackled projects such as rebuilding a barber shop and community park, building an outdoor performing space, and making homes handicap accessible.
Maugeri said for this season of the show they hope to help a town in the heartland of the United States.
"It will be six episodes about you guys," Maugeri said.
Maugeri was in town Saturday "looking for what makes Sallisaw stand out."
The show, which is sponsored by Home Depot, hires local contractors for the work and also uses volunteers. Maugeri said all those involved will sign releases to be on camera.
For this season, Maugeri said the team will film for 24 days from April through May, and if the project isn't completed in 24 days, the show will leave construction crews to finish the work.
Several meeting attendees, including Chris Talbot and Pat Welch, promoted a project idea of restoring the old Sallisaw High School which burned last year.
Maugeri said the school also came to her mind because while it is an unusual space, it is still a historical structure that means so much to residents. Residents voiced ideas of turning the school into a type of community center.
Residents also tossed around various other project ideas.
Laura Page said The Shed, a youth outreach program located in downtown Sallisaw, is in need of expansion, and she also pitched the idea of a possible skateboard facility that could also be included. She said the program is a safe haven where youth can also hear "the word of the Lord."
Christina Fuson, Sequoyah Theater owner, said she has owned the theater for a little over a year, and she is trying to fix it up, but their funds mainly go for concessions and getting the movies. She said for the children and teenagers who go to the theater, the theater is a part of their lives. She said she would like to see the theater restored so that people can be proud to come there and be comfortable.
Margaret Perry, organizer of Sallisaw's Main Street program, said Main Street has people who want to help and rebuild. She said those involved in Main Street want to re-do the storefronts, but their biggest problem is a lack of money.
Kristopher Copeland, who revived the Sequoyah County Community Theater, said he would like to see a place for community arts, such as a cultural center. He said the high school has an auditorium, but it's in bad shape.
Heith Wilkinson, director of the Boys and Girls Club, said they are currently using a facility the city let them have, but they have quickly and vastly outgrown the spot they are in. He said the club would be an easy space to be added on, and the project would be a great way to impact hundreds of children.
Wilkinson said individual stories could also be found in the club, including single parents working as hard as they can to make ends meet.
Maugeri said interesting stories of people in the community are what the show is looking to focus on this season.
Debbie Phillips, principal of Liberty Elementary School in Sallisaw, said some students don't have indoor plumbing and some students' families have had their electricity turned off. She said if the show is looking for specific families, she has some in mind. Phillips later brought in a local woman who lost her child last year to cancer and her family needs improvements done to their home.
Maugeri said those specific stories are what they want.
"We're television, but we're also community outreach," Maugeri said.
Maugeri gave interviewees about a minute to two minutes each to tell her about specific projects and what those projects meant to them.
Fuson said she is excited at the prospect of the show coming to Sallisaw, and about the possibility that her theater could be chosen to be revamped.
"That would be awesome," Fuson said.
Fuson said repairing the theater's leaking floor and adding more comfortable chairs would be nice improvements.
"It's not my theater. It's the community's theater," Fuson said.
Judy Martens, chamber executive vice president, said she thinks the show coming to Sallisaw would be a boost for the economy and community spirit.
Martens said she loves Wilkinson's idea, along with the old high school project.
"They're all worthy projects," Martens said. "They can't go wrong...I wish they could do them all."
Maugeri said the show's producers began looking in Green Country for towns near areas of water with populations from 7,000 to 12,000 people and near a Home Depot.
Maugeri said there will be one central project, a finale project, along with various other smaller projects.
"This town above all has one project at the heart of the community," Maugeri said, referring to the old high school.
She said the show's executive producer is coming into the four-state region to see some of the towns and decide if that's where they want to be.
"We are working very quickly," Maugeri said.
Maugeri said there are a number of reasons to choose a town, but "gut instincts" will ultimately determine which town is selected.
Maugeri said show producers could make their decision within the week.
Until then, the city and its residents are preparing for the possibility of their 15 minutes of fame.
