This spring the National Trust for Historic Preservation has been urging supporters to say "This Place Matters," and North Carolina has responded "Yes we do!"

The idea is simple: Download (or make) a poster that says "This Place Matters" and then take a picture holding it in front of someplace special to you. Throughout May (designated National Preservation Month) and beyond, This Place Matters photos have been uploaded to the PreservationNation website, Flickr and other places.

Raleigh's Borden Building

Members of Raleigh's Historic Districts Commission took a moment to pose outside of the capital's historic Borden Building. Supporters of the effort to preserve UNCG's historic residential Quad used their big This Place Matters sign as a rallying cry.

The city of Goldsboro's images have been featured in the National Trust newsletter. The Downtown Goldsboro Development  Corporation has made more than 30 posters that show buildings that matter in Downtown Goldsboro — and the people who care about them.

"The simplicity of the statement This Place Matters holds so many meanings," DGDC director Julie Thompson told PreservationNation. "These places are part of the town’s eco-system and are an important part of our heritage."

Clemmons Boy Scouts at the Peter Clemmons House

"We have certainly gotten a lot of exposure as a result of the campaign," agrees Sarah Parris with the Alliance for Historic Hillsborough, an umbrella organization devoted to fostering historic preservation, the arts, tourism and more.

City staff in Winston-Salem were looking for a way to promote the city's new Facebook page this spring, when they decided to incorporate a This Place Matters campaign. People and groups have submitted than 70, and the number of Facebook fans has gone from 300 to 3,000.

People like the idea of choosing places that matter to them, says Michelle McCullough, Historic Resource Coordinator for Winston-Salem and Forsyth County. "That opens it up for the whole community to say 'This is special!' It shows people how all these places fit together like pieces in a puzzle — It takes all of them together to make a complete picture."