CLGBTCC member Make a Move loading donations to be moved to the WNC area. Credit: Courtesy CLGBTCC
As of November 1, 2024, it has been a little over a month since Hurricane Helene hit the Western North Carolina region. Coming in with winds blowing up to 106 mph, combined with the compounding rains that both preceded the actual storm and continued to fall during the cataclysm, devastation was sewn throughout the area.
Given the level of destruction and loss, Helene stands to be remembered for its effect on the regions it came across, much like how many Charlotteans recall Hurricane Hugo in 1989.
The response to the storm, thankfully, can be said to be just as memorable, if not more, as time moves forward. Local businesses that still stood afterward providing for the needs of others to the best of their abilities, keeping communities fed and their communication devices charge so that help could be contacted the moment cell towers were restored. Neighbors helped neighbors, whether it was next door or a few small townships over, offering shelter and the use of any construction equipment needed to move trees or restore the roads buried under mounds of dirt and debris.
Finally, from outside the hills of Appalachia came support, whether that meant supplies and hundreds of extra hands needed by those affected more directly by the storm, or the convoys of trucks all along the East Coast and even from up in the Canadian territories.
Palettes of household necessities, dry goods and water to be distributed in Western NC. Credit: Courtesy CLGBTCC
Our people were hurt, and others felt the need to stand up in a time of tragedy and desperation. The speed relief efforts were taken will fill more than a few chapters in history.
For the LGBTQ+ community in Western NC, The Carolinas LGBTQ+ Chamber of Commerce (CLGBTCC) has been a giant part of the constant recovery efforts. After activating efforts toward organizing that same time-sensitive week, CLGBTCC headed out to the first set of problem areas that were accessible.
Partnering with Hearts United For Good (HUG), Twirl to the World
(TW), and Hydration Station, the groups worked together to tackle each set of issues present, taking relief aid to those affected and spreading out as necessary.
Chad Turner, President of CLGBTCC, has been one of several sets of hands that’s been instrumental in connecting with numerous organizations in order to get help westward. Speaking with Qnotes,
Turner elaborated on what makes the efforts possible in tandem with the other leads at the helm.
“We worked with [our partnership groups] concerning the items they needed most for the areas they were targeting,” Turner explained. “After giving us information on what the area is actually asking for, while they were making trips out there daily or weekly, we contacted our members and our partners to tell them what was most important,” Turner
explained.
“We’ve gotten requests for tarps, gas cans, washcloths, towels, batteries, bottles, baby bottles; things that people are not thinking of when they’re dropping food and clothes. They’re not getting things they need to have shelter, sustain power, and other things like that. That’s how we got linked up.”
Before CLGBTCC, Turner previously served as a board member at HUG for two terms, making the requests to partner up for the tasks ahead relatively simple.
Through their combined efforts, areas like Asheville, Old Fort, and the counties of Avery & Mitchell have all received assistance and aid, with many more destinations to come. And it hasn’t been just supplies that the groups have been offering help with.
During their efforts to reach out to the more than 100 residents of Western NC in their membership, the CLGBTCC is trying to ensure that everybody was accounted for, but also talking to them about what needs they might have. From getting them linked up with applications for FEMA assistance,
via small business loans or general help, to working with unemployment offices for assistance from the state.
With boots on the ground experience while transporting supplies, along with surveying other impacted areas in need of assistance, Turner has seen first-hand how those affected by the storm have put
differences aside in order to get through the worst of the budding recovery months.
“I have seen a resilience and an all hands on deck mentality that I haven’t seen in quite a while in North Carolina,” Turner recalled. “Like, it doesn’t matter, you know, what political party, what race, who you love, none of that matters. It seems like everybody’s all hands on, and everybody’s helping everybody. That’s what I’ve seen the most of and I’ve also seen devastation in
ways that I haven’t seen before.
“In my time, Hurricane Hugo came up in 1989 all the way up into Charlotte, and we were devastated. Everything was shut down for weeks. Schools, there was no power or water. But this [Western North Carolina] was a different type of devastation. You had those same things happen, but buildings and spaces and parking and cars were just washed away. You would see an area that was inundated by debris, and places were just erased from these areas.”
As the seasons have started to change, so too do the needs from the affected areas. With snow on the horizon, ways to create warmth, along with food and shelter, are at the top of the priority lists. For those looking out for specific items that could be donated, those looking to donate should try to get their hands on things like blankets (electric and regular), hand warmers, gloves, caps and coats.
CLGBTCC President and CEO Chad Turner says fuel containers are in high demand for those in need. Credit: Courtesy CLGBTCC
Part of the issue many sites are having, according to Turner, is finding enough storage for what’s been donated, so the well-meaning efforts of concerned organizations and individuals doesn’t go to waste.
“There’s the fire department in Avery County that we have as a central system for donations. They’re trying to figure out how they can get rid of half the stuff in their firehouse so they can make room for the stuff that actually needs to be utilized. And that’s the problem,” Turner emphasized.“And it’s not saying that people aren’t doing the right thing. It’s just they’re not being strategic about it to ensure that we’re not duplicating efforts, because everybody is trying to help and everybody’s trying to do the right thing.”
HUG’s Executive Director, Bethany McDonald, has been instrumental in tackling this issue, brought on by those caring from afar through donations. Among the tasks on her Tuesday visits, she coordinated with resource zones like the Elk Fire Department and the Spirit Country Store in Newland. Places that, as explained to Qnotes, serve as distribution zones into the surrounding communities and have been taking back materials clogging the spaces needed for other drop-offs.
According to McDonald, thanks to the daily efforts by the National Guard, she and the partnering organizations are able to take on the additional tasks throughout the region, starting with Avery and Nancy counties before heading to other areas in need.
“What we’ve been doing is focusing on the smaller, kind of offset towns, the ones that aren’t getting all of the attention and
the support,” McDonald said. “So, what we started to do was go a little bit more northeast of Asheville. When we started to help we wanted to target the ones that had more low income families and the elderly, that needed things the most.”
One business in the western North Carolina region thankful for the volunteers and organizations who have stepped into help is the Reins-Sturdivant Funeral Home.
Garrick Smith is the general manager for the business in Avery County, which generally serves the towns of Banner Elk, Newland and Elk Park. “We had three feet of water in our building,” Smith recalls. “We lost everything in the building and our fleet
of vehicles.”
He confirms that several organizations from Charlotte have been on hand to help with cleanup and provide general items needed in daily living. “Honestly, it’s been amazing to see a community receive the help and support they need. The outpouring of love, prayers and assistance we’ve received has been phenomenal. I know I speak for all of Avery County when I say we appreciate everything that has been done, so much.”
Smith’s experience with Hurricane Helene expands beyond just the impact on the business he manages. His mother was living in a senior living complex where the ground floor flooded. She is currently staying with his family.
“My mother didn’t lose everything,” he explains. ”But eight or 10 people there did and [residents] have been displaced while cleaning and rebuilding takes place. We just feel so fortunate there have been volunteers and organizations that have come in to help with the cleanup [and] the response and help came so quickly.”
As for LGBTQ+ organizations to reach out to, Turner pointed out Pride organizations that are still functioning in the affected areas. Blue Ridge Pride, Hendersonville Pride, and other surrounding
organizations like them need assistance more than ever. Blue Ridge, along with the others, have set up resource centers for LGBTQ+ folks to have access to needed items, such as food, water, clothing, gift cards, and a place to charge their devices.
Another way to help those in western North Carolina? Contribute to local funds in each town or city affected. Local chambers in Asheville and Hendersonville are utilizing any resources given, monetary or otherwise, to help the surrounding communities and those who have lost everything to Helene.
Those affected who have access to the internet can go to https://www.clgbtcc.org/disaster-relief-hub-western-north-carolina/ to see an extensive list of forms and information on places offering shelter by county, where to search for missing friends and family, and the locations accepting donations at this time.
If you live in the Charlotte area, CLGBTCC is taking weekly in-person donations at 933 Louise Ave, suite 529. The main homepagealso has links where you can donate monetarily as well as an Amazon wish list detailing the immediate needs the Chamber is focused on fulfilling.
Additional content created for this article by David Aaron Moore
This story has been supported by the Solutions Journalism Network, a nonprofit organization dedicated to rigorous and compelling reporting about responses to social problems http://solutionsjournalism.org.