Helen Hill | Charleston Cheerleader

Photo by Marni Rothschild Durlach

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Helen Hill is constantly rolling out the red carpet. As Executive Director of the Charleston Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, she’s making sure visitors fall in love with the city just as the locals have. “We see ourselves as the first stop to a lot of other good things. If the visitor experience is strong, then we have a leg up on economic development.” A native of the city herself, she took the helm of the CVB just one month before Hugo hit. “It was initiation by fire in the best way. We learned so much during Hurricane Hugo that we still use today.” And although locals may grumble about the influx of sightseers, Helen is also proud of the CVB’s Be a Tourist initiative—an opportunity for locals
to visit typically touristy sites for a reduced fee in the off-season. “In January we don’t have a lot of visitors, so we thought we could do well and do good at the same time.” Sign up at beatourist.net.