Edmonson County 5th grader helps those affected by London tornadoes

EDMONSON COUNTY, Ky. – A Caneyville girl who is a student at the Edmonson County 5th/6th Grade Center is helping those in London who were affected by the recent tornadoes.

“I love helping others because you never know what someone’s going through and you’re all… everyone’s fighting a battle somehow.”

That’s the mindset of Kinleigh Hampton, who decided to start a group called Kinleigh’s Kindness, which originally helped the Ronald McDonald House in Nashville, but is now focused on those affected by the tornadoes.

“So I knew they was going through a hard time… so I just wanted to help them because they’re… I mean, their houses were destroyed and there was many fatalities. So I just wanted to help the people because everyone needs just that extra little smile and the extra help,” Kinleigh said.

Her main goal was to collect items for those that lost their homes:

“We collected lots of food. We also collected baby clothes, and even adult clothes because everyone needs something like that… towels, blankets and anything we could possibly get,” she said.

Her mom, however, says that wasn’t all she did while she was there.

“We actually went to donate stuff and then a few minutes later, she had a shovel in her hand and a rake and we was there eight hours working… and we stayed there all day working, and it was amazing. We actually was with this one lady that lost everything in her house and we spent eight hours with her and she was lifting bricks… well, she done hard, hard work,” Selina Linder, Kinleigh’s mom, said.

Kinleigh said she’s grateful for the community’s support, and her mom is proud of the work she’s done.

“I’m very appreciative… I don’t really know the biggest number because I can’t count that large, but I am the biggest number in the whole world,” Kinleigh said.

“Can’t even describe how proud I am of her, she’s really got a heart of gold,” Selina said.