DECATUR — Seventy motorcycles with 101 riders participated in the First Annual Wyatt Hopkins Memorial poker run on Saturday, according to fire chief David Flynt.

The event was held to raise money for the Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock. Flynt said he was very pleased with the turnout for the event, especially considering the cloudy weather and threat of storms.

“I was very impressed with 70 bikes on that cloudy of a morning and on a first year,” retired firefighter Rob Hopkins said.

Wyatt Hopkins was the son of Decatur firefighter Brent Hopkins and his wife Sara, and the grandson of Rob Hopkins. Firefighters came up with the idea for the poker run to honor Wyatt’s memory and to help other children who face serious health problems.

The final tally is not in yet, but 100 percent of the profits from the poker run will benefit the children’s hospital, Flynt said.

Riders followed a 123 mile course through Arkansas and Oklahoma before returning for a barbecue beef dinner and live entertainment by Matt Davis and his band.

Rob Hopkins won the high hand in the poker run and donated his winnings back to the event. John Austin won the prize for the lowest hand.

An Air-Evac helicopter landed in Veterans’ Park to join in the celebration and a multitude of door prizes were given away after the dinner.

A number of community members and people from the Chamber of Commerce stepped in to help with the event, in addition to firefighters and their families, Flynt said.

“We couldn’t have done it without the volunteers. We had a lot of good donations and door prizes,” he said.

Community, Pages 8 on 05/05/2010