News

Local non-profits hit hard by Helene worked to recover from the storm

Flooding in Patton Park from Hurricane Helene destroyed the offices of the Literacy Connection. The building, located in far-left of the photograph, was later demolished.

By Amy McCraw, Published: January 3, 2026

Most non-profit agencies in Western North Carolina struggled in the year after Hurricane Helene with both physical damage to their properties and the emotional wellbeing of their staff, a recent report commissioned by WNC Nonprofit Pathways and Dogwood Health Trust found.

The report, “Rising Above: Resilience and Recovery Among Western North Carolina Nonprofits After Hurricane Helene,” found that while nearly 60% of the 251 WNC nonprofits that were surveyed experienced physical damage to buildings or property, collectively totaling more than $100 million in losses, the social and emotional toll was just as significant, leaders at Dogwood Health Trust and WNC Nonprofit Pathways said.
Among other things, the report, which was released in September, highlighted that staff and volunteers faced personal hardship while continuing to respond to growing community needs.
“Our local nonprofits were among the first to respond to Helene in our communities – opening their doors and distributing food and supplies, often while dealing with their own losses,” said Susan Mims, CEO of Dogwood Health Trust. “According to the North Carolina Center for Nonprofits, Western North Carolina nonprofits employ 32,000 people and spend more than $5 billion in our communities, with more than $1.3 billion spent on wages. Their services are essential to our region’s economy and more important than ever. Appreciating their leadership and investing in their recovery must be part of supporting Western North Carolina’s future.”
In this year’s survey of non-profit leaders in Henderson County, the Lightning focused on their ongoing recovery from Helene. We asked about damages from the storm, how Helene impacted workforce, how agencies met needs in the community and the challenges associated with recovery.
Responses were submitted by:
• Lauren Wilkie, Safelight CEO.
• Jamie Wiener, Blue Ridge Community College Educational Foundation Executive Director.
• Elizabeth Willson Moss, Interfaith Assistance Ministry Executive Director.
• Kelly Hart, Literacy Connection Executive Director.

What effect (physical damage or other consequence) did Hurricane Helene have on your agency?

Wiener: Hurricane Helene caused widespread damage across Blue Ridge Community College’s campuses, forcing a two-week closure and months of recovery work that included extensive tree removal, loss of power lines, destroyed broadband connections and facility repairs. Major roads and highways leading to campus were initially blocked in all directions, disrupting operations and transportation for much of our community.
Moss: IAM was fortunate to experience little physical damage. The biggest physical consequences were a generator giving out and the lack of Wi-Fi. The huge consequence is the unprecedented need from local Henderson County residents for assistance with basic needs: food, rent and utility bill assistance, personal care items, clothing, pet food and gasoline vouchers.
Wilkie: Safelight experienced damages to our facilities around 150K from water leaking through the roof into offices and client spaces in two buildings. Additionally, we experienced about 25K in losses from the closure of our Safelight Resale store and Dandelion Café. We held our annual fundraising event as a vigil not making an ask estimating 300-400K in losses.
Hart: Just as our new executive director (started July 22, 2024) was getting her feet wet and learning what was in the closets and filing cabinets, Helene came and took it all away, submerging the office we rented from the City of Hendersonville in Patton Park. It has since been demolished, and we lost almost everything, but we did not lose hope.

How did you pivot and adapt to the need during, immediately after and for the weeks and months beyond Sept. 27, 2024?

Wilkie: Through Helene, we had staff onsite 24/7. Our Safelight Resale Store was able to stock the emergency county pop up Red Cross shelter with supplies, including clothing, bedding and kitchen equipment. They were most excited about the new coffee pot we were able to give them. Our resale store continues to accept and distribute clothes and housewares free to those in need. Our Dandelion Café helped our fruit farmers, Pilot Mountain Pears and Granddad’s Apples, donate and distribute fresh fruits that would have gone to compost, which we in turn gave away to local emergency food disbursement centers.
During Helene, our 24/7 Crisis Hotline was the only hotline available in our county other than 911. A beacon of light for our community, staying open, for a variety of caller needs. Most callers the first few days just needed a voice to answer the phone and tell them we were okay, and that our clients were okay. Many people called desperate for us to go look for their loved ones, which while we could not do safely, we were able to be a listening, caring ear. Our shelter never closed, even while being in the dark for eight days and we stayed full housing 31 survivors (16 adults, 15 kids and one dog). To keep staff through the storm available and safe, we quickly rented an Airbnb downtown so staff could walk to work through the rain and elements.
Helene brought an increase in survivors seeking shelter and housing services who were displaced from their homes and who were experiencing dangers from abuse and violence prior to the added isolation and stressors of being stuck in the dark, stranded at home. Just after, we assisted children who had been airlifted from their homes, neglected prior to Helene and their needs accelerated from a dangerous home environment made lethal by Helene. We continued see an influx of children through our child advocacy center as they were being identified by DSS, law enforcement and school personnel as having experienced increased trauma from abuse, violence or neglect exacerbated by Helene.
Post Helene, we added a 60KW generator to the Washington Street facility so this can become our back-up shelter location in the future and maintain power so we can remain open and functional. Stuller Power Solutions was the partner on the battery and will be the installer for our new generator. Dunlap Construction helped with repairs from water intrusion.
Hart: The first step was reaching out to our tutors and students to assess their situations and meet their immediate needs. We had tutors meeting students to practice their language and literacy skills in new locations, including at supply distribution sites.
The storm revealed the heart of our program: the connections between tutors and students. When Donasiano learned his tutor’s driveway was blocked by trees, he showed up with a chainsaw and got to work. When Connie discovered that her daughter’s storage unit was flooded, her student brought not only her two high school sons but also her husband and his truck to move the salvageable items to the tutor’s garage. These stories remind us that Literacy Connection is about more than literacy; it’s about connection!
Literacy Connection is fortunate to have been offered space inside of First United Methodist Church where we now reside. We are now co-located with True Ridge which has created exciting partnership opportunities.
Wiener: Blue Ridge closed for a total of two weeks, at which time the College was able to safely reopen and welcome students. In addition to resuming studies for those able to travel to campus, it gave students and employees access to water, power, internet connectivity and other resources.
Within days of the storm, as soon as communications were partially restored, the Blue Ridge Community College Educational Foundation quickly mobilized to assist students with urgent individual needs and directed donations to our emergency fund supporting those most affected. Every student experienced the storm differently, so the foundation collaborated closely with the college’s financial aid and student services teams to quickly direct students to the best sources of assistance.
Moss: IAM’s Executive Director Elizabeth Willson Moss gathered IAM’s team together on the Saturday afternoon after the storm. Together we planned how we would reopen as scheduled on Monday morning following the storm, despite operating on partial power and no Wi-Fi. Despite the fact that several of IAM’s team members had lost their homes in the storm and others that had suffered extensive damages to their homes, we opened with Drive-Through food and personal care distribution (as needed) every afternoon the first week after the storm. Thanks to assistance from Henderson County Manager John Mitchell and his IT team with the gift of a Starlink mid-week, our connections with the community improved significantly.

How did Helene affect your volunteer workforce (ability to reach your campus, ability to communicate, unable to work because of damage to their home or roads, etc.)?

Hart: Our staff worked from Main Street in front of HandsOn! using their StarLink internet to access information to track down our volunteers and clients. It took several weeks to track down all volunteer tutors and students and to find new places for them to work together since our building was destroyed. We had a tutor airlifted from his home in Bat Cave, a student cut off from her home near Chimney Rock, etc. Our staff worked at distribution sites supporting the community while we were dislocated from our office.
Wilkie: We were unable to respond and assist the first few days, then everyone was coming in to help where they could! We had volunteers delivering food for clients and staff. We had donations from local farmers of produce they were going to have to toss. So, we all pivoted to pealing pears and apples with volunteers that we then canned or froze to share to the community.
Moss: Like our staff, many of our volunteers also suffered damage to their homes and many could not get to IAM because roads were blocked, etc. That said, we are incredibly grateful to the 20+ volunteers who did show up, including some that we had never met before who heard about our need for volunteer assistance on WTZQ.
Wiener: Many students and employees were displaced or unable to travel due to power outages, road damage and personal losses. Throughout the recovery, the college and the educational foundation worked hand in hand to stay connected, quickly assess our community’s needs and provide vital financial and personal support to those affected.
Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we were able to raise funds to support students facing significant hardship including water and mold damage in their homes, loss of furniture due to roof leaks, transportation and lodging support, food and clothing assistance, storage solutions and other unexpected expenses caused by the storm. In total, we distributed nearly $114,000 in aid directly benefiting students in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, while also providing much-needed support to help families celebrate Thanksgiving and the holiday season with greater comfort and security.

Can you describe the challenges (aggravation) of receiving reimbursements from private insurance, FEMA and other state and federal agencies?
Hart: Our private insurance claim was denied because it did not contain flood coverage. The only insurance support we received was having the lease on our copying machine paid off; that process was extended by Hurricane Milton which impacted the office of our insurance provider. We sat through multiple meetings, both virtual and in-person, to seek FEMA support, but in the end, we ended up instead relying on the generosity of our friends and neighbors and our Rise from the Flood campaign, along with the generosity of local foundations and First United Methodist Church to relocate and resume our services.
Moss: IAM, as an agency, did not apply for FEMA assistance. We did, however, assist many of our neighbors in need through referrals. Many of them and our staff members who suffered severe losses from Helene were extremely frustrated by the slowness of the process and the complexity of it.
Wiener: Throughout the storm and its aftermath, Blue Ridge housed search and rescue crews and emergency personnel and provided Henderson County with a space to coordinate volunteer efforts. FEMA established a basecamp in the Patton Building parking lot on Blue Ridge’s Flat Rock campus, coordinating local and regional recovery efforts from our grounds. Their presence supported the community’s broader disaster response, and our college proudly served their needs during this time.
Wilkie: It was difficult to qualify or navigate. To use FEMA, you had to make insurance claims against damages causing policies to go up considerably. We had to extra grant write to cover loses to the buildings for repairs.

We know that we’re only partway through recovery from the unprecedented storm. From your leadership position, do you see your agency in whole or in part responding to the Helene recovery for a long time to come? In what ways?

Moss: Yes, without question. IAM continues to assist local residents who lost their homes and income as a result of Helene with rent and utility bill assistance, food (especially during this time of cutbacks to SNAP) and other federal programs that help people living at and below federal poverty guidelines), seasonal clothing, gasoline cards, personal care items, pet food, sheets, towels, blankets and more.
To put it in perspective, before the pandemic, assisting 40 households a day was a busy day. Since Helene and now the cuts to government programs designed to help families in poverty survive, we now are assisting between 130 and 200 households a day with basic needs. When you live paycheck to paycheck and in an ongoing financial crisis, the loss of even a few days’ wages can be devastating. When it’s a few weeks or even more than a month that businesses were closed after Helene, the personal stories become catastrophic. IAM, while serving on the board of the Disaster Recovery Partnership, is on the front lines of assisting our community’s recovery. We are grateful to have been funded with a case manager through DRP and have received much-needed assistance from United Way and the Community Foundation of Henderson County. Our surprise national award from The Courage Project underscores the impact our staff and volunteers made in Helene’s aftermath. We were nominated by United Way’s President and CEO of United Way International, Angela Williams, who toured IAM after the hurricane. Thank you go all who helped IAM and our other nonprofit partners!
Wiener: To this day, the Foundation continues to stand beside our students, providing vital financial support and awarding more than 200 scholarships that empower them to stay in school and build meaningful careers. This work is made possible through the generosity of our donors, whose continued support remains critical this giving season.
Together, Blue Ridge Community College and the Foundation remain steadfast partners in rebuilding Western North Carolina, fueling programs that drive regional recovery, strengthen local industries, and prepare students for high-paying, in-demand careers. Our communities and workforce are emerging stronger, more resilient, and full of hope for the future.
Wilkie: We continue to offer all our services and partner with the disaster recovery team for our county.
Hart: Literacy Connection has risen from the devastation of Hurricane Helene stronger than ever. Losing our building and all its contents was overwhelming, but the tremendous support from our community near and far provided immediate relief that allowed us to relocate, cover essential rent and utilities, and rebuild our operations. Rebuilding from scratch has allowed us to assess the current needs and ensure our processes and programs are meeting them, focusing on the most important things first. We will continue to rebuild for months and years to come knowing that we are rooted in our mission, resilient to disruption, and rising together with the support of our community.