Won’t You Be My Neighbor?

Hey friends,

It’s Tad, writer of NWA Daily. I don’t typically “break the fourth wall” and prefer to write the newsletter with a level of anonymity, but today feels different…

It’s Memorial Day, but most of the community will spend the day picking up the pieces of their homes, businesses, and neighborhoods after the terrible storms that swept through the area early Sunday morning.

Today is also my birthday, so I hope you’ll permit me to share some personal thoughts.

I already tend to get super reflective around birthdays, but as pictures rolled in of the tornado damage yesterday, it shocked me to see the place I grew up in such a broken state. It was a sort of sad stroll down memory lane…

• The Center for Nonprofits in Rogers is closed until further notice. I was born there in 1993 when it was still St. Mary’s Hospital.

• Trees are down along SE 3rd St in Bentonville. That’s where I set record speeds on my red Razor scooter, racing my sister to the Square (before it was cool).

• The Susie Q Malt Shop in Downtown Rogers had its roof torn off. I spent many a high school summer day there grabbing a post-lake burger and cherry malt… with extra malt.

I love Northwest Arkansas. I’m so thankful to have grown up here. I’m particularly fond of Downtown Bentonville and Downtown Rogers, where I spent so much of my childhood and adolescent years.

It’s hard to see a place you love take a hit like this.

I took to Facebook and local news sites yesterday to see if I could compile a helpful list of resources for the newsletter (you’ll find some below) but to be honest, I mostly just scrolled through photos of the damage and felt sad.

But then, I came across a bright smile and a big bowl of pancake batter…

I don’t know Megan and Collin… but the kind of people who wake up to their home under fallen trees and whose first thought is, “Let’s make the neighbors pancakes!” are the kind of people that make me proud to call this place home.

And there were plenty of other neighborly instances like this:

• Asian Amigo Supermarket in Rogers gave away its produce to the community.

• Mojo Bike Rentals redirected all its hotdogs from the Bentonville Bike Fest to feed those in need.

• Members of Sheep Dog Impact Assistance rushed back home from the Carry The Load Memorial Day event in Dallas to start organizing relief efforts.

This isn’t the Memorial Day Weekend that we expected. In fact, for some of our neighbors, it’s the grief-stricken start of a long and difficult road to rebuilding their lives.

But times like this remind us that what makes Northwest Arkansas such a wonderful place to live is not the flashy buildings, the expensive bike trails, the latest concert, or the hippest new place to eat…

It’s our neighbors.

I recently read the biography of Fred Rogers, the great American icon of neighborly love, and I’m reminded of his quote:

So, this Memorial Day 2024, as the morning birdsong gives way to the roaring chorus of chainsaws, maybe we can find enough hope in our hearts to hum along:

 🎶 It's a beautiful day in this neighborhood
 A beautiful day for a neighbor
Would you be mine? Could you be mine?
Won’t you be my neighbor? 🎶

#NWAStrong,
Tad

We’re keeping an updated list of Disaster Relief & Resources HERE.