By Carl Manning
American Red Cross

When a tornado struck Arkansas last year, the American Red Cross was there to help those in need, thanks in large part to the various partnerships developed over time.

The March 31, 2023, tornado struck Little Rock and made its way to North Little Rock, Sherwood, Jacksonville and Wynne, leaving a large swath of destruction in its wake.

Lori Arnold-Ellis, Red Cross Greater Arkansas Chapter executive director, said the one thing that stands out for her was the number of people needing help and how everybody in the state wanted to help.

“We can do a lot, but we can’t do everything. Having those partnerships, having those other organizations out there helping was crucial to being able to successfully help everybody who needed help,” Arnold-Ellis said.

And there was a lot of need for help. Thousands of homes were impacted by the tornado. Sadly, five people lost their lives and many others were injured.

Although more than 940 Red Crossers from Arkansas and neighboring Missouri, which makes up the local Red Cross region, as well as others from across the nation showed up to help during the disaster response, Arnold-Ellis said that it was the partners who really made all the difference.

“There is no way we could have helped all those people if we didn’t have the support of all the other people also out there being the helpers,” she said.

One of the first things the Red Cross did was to set up shelters like the one at the Calvary Baptist Church in Little Rock.

Yolanda Carter, whose home was damaged, said the shelter provided a safe place to stay with hot meals and snacks plus health care services. When she needed to move about, there was a Red Cross volunteer there to push her wheelchair.

“It’s so heartwarming. I’m so grateful to all in the Red Cross,” she said.

Some Red Cross volunteers collaborated with community partners to distribute emergency supplies such as shovels, rakes, storage bins and tarps in hard-hit neighborhoods in Jacksonville and Wynne.

Others served as caseworkers at Recovery Centers like the one at the Assembly of God Church in Wynne, another partner also provided space for a Red Cross shelter.

It was there that Majorie Guthrie talked to caseworker Jim Bain about being at home with her three dogs when the tornado struck. Her eyes filled with tears as she talked, and she had to compose herself before continuing.

“I’m glad to be here to help them get through this. When you lose everything, every little bit helps,” Bain said.

The scene was repeated at other Recovery Centers and sometimes when people were unable to make it to the Red Cross, it would come to them. In the end, the Red Cross assisted 1,360 families, which equated to more than 3,100 individuals.

Caseworker John Kinder was at the Recovery Center in Jacksonville and headed to one of the ravaged areas where he found Connie Keister standing in the front yard of her damaged home.

She explained she hadn’t had time to get to the center. Kinder assured her he was there to help as he opened his laptop and started taking her information.

On Easter Sunday, many Little Rock residents set aside plans to celebrate the day and instead cleaned up debris in their neighborhoods.

Red Cross volunteers Patty Patterson and Vickie Levy were distributing emergency supplies in the neighborhoods, but they also realized the day was special to so many.

Patterson donned a pair of blue bunny ears as she and Levy handed out Easter candy to the youngsters they saw as they drove through the neighborhoods.

At one stop, Patterson talked to Daniel Kiel as he cleaned debris in his front yard. Levy handed his 3-year-old daughter Rosemary several pieces of Easter candy.

Rosemary smiled, thanked them and quickly walked over to her father to share what she was holding, and waved as Patterson and Levy drove off.

A year later the community continues to recover from the devastating tornado of March 31, 2023.