After seeing the destruction in downtown Louisville with her own eyes, Ashley Cordero bought cleaning supplies and got to work scrubbing off graffiti. "I don't want to see the community like this," Cordero said. "It's not fair. People coming out, cleaning it up, getting it back to where it should be, might stop it and get where we need to be." Cordero was one of many who took it upon themselves to clean up the mess after three days of protesting, rioting and looting marred buildings with graffiti and broken glass. Rebecca Matheny, Executive Director of the Louisville Downtown Partnership estimated hundreds of volunteers came to the organization this weekend to assist in the effort. "It's been so rewarding," Matheny said. "I'm never surprised as much as I am with how much people love downtown and love our city. It just makes me as a Louisvillian very proud." Some volunteers took part in the clean up to illustrate the difference between the peaceful protesters and those who rioted and looted. Their goal was to make sure the message of justice for Breonna Taylor wasn't overshadowed by violence. Others, like Ameerah Palacios, said it was a cathartic way to stand up for their home. "People live here," Palacios said. "There are black businesses down here. There are people who live and work here. It was just really important as a downtown resident to make this morning about something positive and being part of our community coming back from all this." While the reasons for cleaning varied, many of the volunteers said their efforts were an important way to move forward after the violence. "Downtown is a vibrant community of people who love Louisville," Palacios said. "We will be back, we will rebuild, we will restore and we're going to be better than ever."