Smith finished Boston Marathon before explosions

During the 10-minute train ride from downtown Boston to nearby Dedham, Mass., Clint Smith received numerous texts from people back home in Fulton.

They wanted to know how Smith was doing, if he was all right. Naturally, having just finished running the Boston Marathon for the first time, Smith thought they were concerned about what kind of toll the 26.2 miles had taken on him.

Only after getting off the train, checking his phone and returning to his hotel did Smith learn of the horrific devastation that had just occurred where he had left. Almost 50 minutes after completing the Boston Marathon - a bucket-list item for Smith - the first of two bombs had detonated near the race's finish line Monday afternoon.

"You could watch people that day - a day that was supposed to be a wonderful day was a tragedy," said Smith, who has been a manager of administration at Callaway Electrical Cooperative for the past 16 years.

To help the tornado-stricken people of Dumas and surroundings, donations can be made to the Delta Area Disaster Relief Fund, care of the Delta Area Community Foundation, P.O. Box 894, Dumas, AR, 71639, or through the Arkansas Community Foundation, 700 S. Rock St., Little Rock, AR, 72202.