Leachville tornado relief center provides help

The former BIC Elementary cafeteria in Leachville was turned into a tornado relief center helping families who suffered damages due to the Dec. 10 tornado that came through Leachville and Monette. The word the organizers used to describe the outpouring of donations is “amazing.”

Laura Hill, one of the volunteers, said they have distributed clothes, food, diapers, accessories, cleaning products and much more. Donations arrived from as far away as Little Rock to Memphis and all the towns in between.

Nancy Spencer, Matthew and Sarah Sills, Laura Hill, Katrina Rhodes Wallace, Jackie and Retha Hawkins, Isabella Hargroves and other volunteers have organized and worked the relief center.

Hill said they know they will have to move out of the center at some point and they are looking for a long term place to store furniture and other items to continue to help area residents when they find new homes or get to move back into their homes.

"The community has come together," Hill said.

In addition to food and clothes, hundreds of Christmas gifts were donated to distribute to the children of all ages to make sure every child had gifts for Christmas.