By Maya Waid via UNC Media Hub

Two weeks after Hurricane Helene ravaged western North Carolina, the community is still reeling from its unexpected destruction. Many residents were caught off guard by the severity of the storm, leaving homes and businesses unprepared for the devastating floodwaters that followed.

In the wake of heavy winds and thunderstorms that preceded the hurricane, rivers and streams overflowed, inundating mountain towns. The deluge swept away trees, cars, and homes, leaving a trail of devastation.

Now, relief organizations and local businesses are coming together to help the community start the long process of rebuilding.

YMCA and Red Cross

One of the first organizations to arrive in the town of Marion was the American Red Cross. Through their partnership with the local YMCA, the Red Cross has been able to assist those who have been displaced following Helene.

“The Department of Social Services organized the chaos to the best of their abilities and then we got brought on and learned their techniques and then we started being a little bit more efficient here at the Y,” YMCA executive director Toby Bramblett said. “When the American Red Cross came in, they just added so much more value and more efficiency.” 

In conjunction with the neighboring senior center, the YMCA opened on Monday, Sept. 30 — three days after Helene. As of Tuesday, the YMCA is housing 50 displaced people and providing residents with a place to shower and free meals.

The YMCA is one of three official shelters in the community where people can stay indefinitely and receive first aid and basic care. In addition to caring for those displaced by Helene, the shelter has also helped those who were homeless before the hurricane.

In the past two weeks, the shelter has received several large food donations, sent crews to evaluate residents’ homes, and helped provide essential care to members of the community.

“This community already had a good system in place,” Bramblett said. “We already had a good community, neighborhood in place, already that was just kind of this culture. It’s a mountain culture.”

Grace Community Church 

One of the primary forces in the Marion community has been Grace Community Church.

Grace Community Church Associate Pastor Adrian Early has been helping to coordinate relief efforts in the area. In the past 14 days, Early and the church have fed more than 10,000 people per day since Helene initially hit on Sept. 27.

Grace partnered with Baptists on Mission to help provide meals, volunteers, and assistance in any way they can in the community, and for eight straight days as of Tuesday, they have been a main hub for hot meals.

Alongside outside support from Baptists on Mission, members of Grace’s congregation volunteered more than 80 hours in less than a week, including a group of high schoolers who helped move mud out of a home.

“It’s been really cool to see our churches in our community and also our church just come together to say, ‘we’re going to do what we’ve got to do to make sure that our people are cared for,’” Early said. 

At Grace Church alone, four members lost their homes, and several others lost their businesses due to the flooding. Two days after the storm, Early and other leaders at Grace set up a service in a local middle school for those who wanted to come together.

During the 50-minute service, 926 people filled the seats, floor, and standing room of the middle school gym.

“It was a time for some to do a little bit of grieving, but it was also a time to actually celebrate,” Early said. “We’re here to celebrate that people survived.” 

East Marion Baptist Church 

Less than 20 minutes down the road, Andrew Walker, the pastor of East Marion Baptist Church, has also helped to coordinate efforts and check in with the 180 members of his church.

When Walker first reached the church on Monday, Sept. 30, he called every number on the church roster to check in.

Once he had spoken with everyone he could reach, Walker organized Stephen’s Ministry, which coordinates mental health counseling services at all official shelter locations. 

Walker ensured that the counselors would make rounds with the nurses and doctors to help care for the psychological needs of the community.

“It’s been tremendous for these people because they have needed to share their stories,” Walker said. “It’s not our experience to be with anyone, let alone dozens and dozens of people who have lost everything. To have the privilege of sharing that with them, showing them the compassion that they need and just listening to them has been incredibly rewarding.”

During the two services his church has held, Walker has preached a message of hope to his congregation.

“In my little community that I live in, our whole community started cooking supper for each other and having people over to play cards at night,” Walker said. “We just kept making sure people had lights and all we could do was check on everyone.” 

The Road Ahead

In the coming months, all of the relief organizations in Marion and surrounding towns have emphasized the need for help not only now, but for help from large teams of people over the next few months and years to rebuild the community.

“Somebody who has lost their home and who has feet of mud on their property is probably just beginning to get cleared up,” Early said. “The work of them actually building a home back, building a life back, is what’s going to start three months from now.”

Several organizations and shelters have had to turn away supply donations due to the influx of them in the last few weeks and instead are asking for monetary donations to help with the reconstruction efforts.

Grace Community Church launched a website to keep people informed and guide both local and outside supporters on how they can help.

Despite the long road ahead, Early, Bramblett, and Walker are all confident that Marion will be able to stick together and rebuild what was lost.

“We are resilient,” Bramblett said. “This is a community where it’s all about people helping people, and that’s the big takeaway.”