Jonesboro, AR — (JonesboroRightNow.com) — April 4, 2025 — Community members in Jonesboro stepped up Friday to help those impacted by a recent tornado.
The NEA Jeep Club held a donation drive at the Kroger’s parking lot to collect donations for victims in Lake City after a tornado tore through the area April 2.
Member Melinda Mercer said once the donations are collected, they will take them Saturday morning and drop them off at the Lake City City Hall. President Charlie Hughes added they will also be grilling food for the victims and volunteers helping with cleanup efforts.
“We have members that are there that have been hit by this as well, so we want ourselves to get out there to know that we’re here to help,” Hughes said.
Some of the items collected at the event included non-perishable items such as canned foods, granola bars, and vegetables, as well as bottles of water. Members also collected toiletries, diapers, feminine products, baby wipes, and other hygiene items.
Once the NEA Jeep Club learned of the destruction the tornado left behind, Mercer said they knew they had to act fast.
“We’ve pushed notifications out through Facebook, through all of our friends and all of the members. It’s been really quick, putting it together, the words getting out, it’s been a little bit slow gathering supplies, but we’re jamming the Jeeps,” Mercer said.
“A lot of the members of the club have personally donated items and stuff too, so we always have that backbone,” Hughes said. “The members have really come together, they always jump in, and we’ve gotten several cash donations and monetary donations, and different food items from the club members themselves.”
Other organizations and companies also stepped in to help the NEA Jeep Club’s cause. According to Mercer, Cavenaugh Kia donated 10 cases of water, while a company out of Florida donated cash for supplies.
Hughes said when it comes to situations like a tornado hitting a town, there are always people in need, and they hope to help with their efforts.
“We’ve all had things that have really affected us, and we’re just here to help because we want to be able to help people back on their feet. We want to support our communities where we live,” Hughes said.
As more severe weather is expected going into Friday night, Mercer said they are going to do what they can to help out even if they have to team up with other Jeep clubs in Arkansas.
“We may not have deep pockets, but we’ve got some big hearts, and we’re willing to help any way we can,” Mercer said. “We love this community. Most of us are born and bred here. We live here. We support it 100%.”
Donations were collected by the NEA Jeep Club between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.
If you did not make it out to Friday’s event, you can still help by sending a donation through Cash App at $Kraftychik2023 or call Mercer at 386-284-5601.