LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — It has been two and a half weeks after the tornado, and Arkansans have still been looking for ways to help one another with recovery.
After the storm hit on March 31, it sparked an idea in one Little Rock firefighter to respond to the call for help— outside of his job.
When Ron Hampton isn't fighting fires with the Little Rock Fire Department, he's out organizing his next volunteer event.
"It is something I feel strongly about," Little Rock Firefighter, Ron Hampton said.
With help from the community, he has been helping those impacted by last month's tornado.
"My house wasn't affected, my family was fine. But shortly after the storm hit, I was messaging a friend of mine, Nate. And he, he was like, Man, how can I help," Hampton explained.
That's when they came up with the idea to host cookouts and tornado relief events around Central Arkansas. He has been doing this with help from community activist, Dawn Kokumo.
"The first day, we set up at Terry Elementary, which is right outside of the storm path. And we fed about 300- 400 people that day and we took up some donations," he said.
He explained that they were able to raise around $700 in just eight hours.
"It was a really beautiful thing because people were just coming through," he added.
It wasn't just a one-day event; Hampton and about 50 other volunteers have handed out food, clothes, and household items three different times since the tornado hit.
"There were individuals from several different churches or several different businesses," he said. "We just had people from all walks of life all ages. It was it was fun. There were kids out there helping us. We had a good time."
He even brought his own kids out to teach them the importance of giving back.
"They really were almost not even asking they were telling me I'm coming. But it was good to let them see the act of helping somebody in need it's something I really want them to learn," he described.
There's a lot more work to be done, so they're not stopping anytime soon.
"The efforts are really ongoing. I mean, Little Rock is not cleaned up yet those of those victims are still affected So we're definitely brainstorming on what we can go to when and where, and how," he said.