WYNNE — Governor Sarah Sanders recognized Wynne as the “Capital for a Day” on Thursday.
While in town, the governor made several stops at areas affected by the March 2023 tornado such as the temporary high school campus and Wynne wastewater treatment plant.
Governor Sanders also hosted a community event at Hot Stone Pizza.
During that stop, Governor Sanders said she was impressed with how the city responded following the storm.
“I know sometimes when you look out there it’s hard to see the difference and hard to see all the things that are going on, but it is truly remarkable what has taken place and that’s a credit to this entire community,” Governor Sanders said. “Things like that don’t just happen.
“That’s because you have all come together, worked together, and made a huge difference and shown what your priorities are and that was making sure that these students didn’t miss getting the opportunity to be in school, to attend their sporting events, and get the education not only they needed but frankly the one that they deserve. That is such a special thing to get to be a part of and to get to see firsthand,” the governor added. “I’m so thankful for the leadership that we have seen in this community and that we’ve had the ability to work with.”
Governor Sanders said many cities may not have rebounded that quickly.
“This was a catastrophic moment in this community and very few ever recover and rebuild the way that you have and certainly never as quickly,” Governor Sanders said. “I just want to say how proud we are that this is the type of community that is representing our entire state. I think it says so much about who you are and about who we are Arkansans and I could not be more proud to be governor of the best state in the country because of communities like Wynne, Arkansas.”
While in Wynne, Governor Sanders presented a high-impact learning grant to the Wynne School District, and $7 million in infrastructure recovery to the City of Wynne.
“This will directly engage about 220 students, providing them with that high-impact tutoring that we know will give them the extra boost that they need to be successful long-term,” Governor Sanders said of the school grant. “We’ve been able to provide about $7 million over the course of the last couple weeks to focus on critical infrastructure here just in the community of Wynne. We’ve worked with Senator (Ronald) Caldwell, Representative (Steve) Hollowell, and your mayor to make sure the infrastructure that is needed for a community to function and provide the basic needs are there. We’re going to continue to do that.”
