Heroes Of Helene: A Year Of Rebuilding

When the river jumped its banks and the bridge disappeared, neighbors didn’t wait for permission—they built a way in. Our year-end Hometown Hero countdown brings together the most downloaded stories of service after Hurricane Helene and beyond, revealing how small acts stacked into a regional lifeline. From a Navy veteran who turned church donations into the Appalachian Navy’s propane lifeline, to an interim fire chief leading his department through storm recovery and a devastating substation fire, these moments show what courage looks like at street level.

We revisit Lynn and Mark in Batcave, who lost their vintage shop and turned the parking lot into a disaster relief hub with showers, tents, and a steady flow of volunteers. We sit with Ashley and Isaac, volunteer firefighters who organized life above a broken bridge, cutting mountain roads so medicine and groceries could reach 140 neighbors. Faith-driven efforts shine too: Spokes of Hope “became local to the local,” moving from freezers and food to construction support, while Michael Brown’s family opened their barn so Amish crews with Great Needs Ministry could build 175 tiny homes for families without shelter.

Service also looks like quiet discipline. Meet Mike, who arrives at First Baptist between two and three in the morning to prepare a sanctuary that welcomes a waking town. And celebrate East Henderson basketball’s 27-game win streak and invitation to the United World Games, proof that teamwork and grit ripple far beyond the court. We close with Helene Rising’s story—a family road trip home with chainsaws that turned into a year of driveways cleared, materials delivered, and dignified help across Appalachia.

If you’re searching for a roadmap to real recovery, you’ll find it here: start where you stand, pair volunteers with local leaders, keep the footprint light, and never underestimate the power of one open door. Subscribe, share these stories with a friend, and leave a review to help more neighbors find the help—and hope—they need.

Transcript

Welcome And Year-End Top Ten Setup

SPEAKER_15 0:00

Good morning, and welcome to the George Real State Group Radio Broadcast here on WHKP every Thursday morning and Merry Christmas. We have a special show for you today, and we're gonna share some amazing stories and remember the conversations that Randy and I have had with the Hometown Hero series, and we're gonna run it again tomorrow. So I'm so grateful to have Randy here with us this morning.

SPEAKER_05 0:25

Thank you, Noah. It's good to be uh joining you on your regular Thursday morning uh radio show that you do here on WHKV. So we kind of hijacked onto that and and said, let's run our top ten of the year for the uh the final uh Thursday, the final this is the way the calendar works out. This is the last one that you'll be doing this year. And so uh we've picked out the well, we didn't pick them out, we chose these top ten from the number of downloads they received on our podcast.

SPEAKER_15 0:55

That's right. We podcast all of our radio shows, including the Hometown Heroes series, and you can follow it and and subscribe. We certainly welcome you to do that. But these the top ten hometown heroes that we're gonna be reflecting on this morning was based on downloads throughout the year.

SPEAKER_05 1:09

Yeah. So uh let's start off the uh the countdown here with the top 10 and coming in at the number 10 spot was a show that we did on September the 19th when Hurricane Helene devastated western North Carolina. We uh found Navy veteran and lifelong Henderson County resident Bud McCall and uh recognized where he stepped up to a need. He began by simply delivering donated supplies from his church that evolved into the Appalachian Navy.

SPEAKER_15 1:40

Which I know a lot of people have heard about the Appalachian Navy. So it's a volunteer organization and it's continues to provide critical aid across the region.

SPEAKER_05 1:48

Here's Bud McCall.

Hurricane Helene And Bud’s Appalachian Navy

SPEAKER_02 1:49

Yeah, so we uh got started basically through our church, you know, right after the storm, a lot of donations and supplies started showing up at uh Bethel Wesleyan Church in Flat Rock, and um through social media I started finding needs and it you know fell on my heart to start helping people and um we were able to take a lot of that stuff to people that needed it. I started branching out into Asheville area and then into Burnsville and I'm I'm going all the way up towards Boone now, even uh McDowell County, Polk County, Rutherford. We're helping um we're helping a few families in Greenville County, South Carolina, actually. And um we've been able to go to Kentucky.

SPEAKER_15 2:29

Um Were you doing this prior to the hurricane or it's can we s can you share how this evolved? I mean, it was just you stepped up in in the time that was needed.

SPEAKER_02 2:38

Um well before that, you know, I was a Boy Scout leader in the area for about twenty-five years. I'm an Eagle Scout and you know, things changed with that. And then when the storm happened, like I said, it just just part of who I was. I just started seeing people, hey, can someone help me? Can people I knew on social media? There was a young lady um that I graduated high school from East Henderson that lives in Burnsville, and she started posting stuff that what people needed, and I reached out to her, and that's kind of how I got started going and created.

SPEAKER_05 3:07

One of the uh I think study read where uh you are especially able to help people with propane needs. Yeah. Tell us about that.

SPEAKER_02 3:16

Um so we started uh you know, one of the main groups that helped me was there's a YouTube channel called Deep River Farm. Um, a gentleman named Wayne Alred, his his uncle was our pastor when I was a when I was a kid, and um he started an organization called Operation Mountain Relief, and that's where all these donations came from. And you know, the when the needs last winter started showing up that people were in campers and needed help with propane, you know, people started donating, uh going online and purchasing bottles for us, and they started showing up, and then um we started partnering with propane, uh Prince Propane Gas Company in Landrum, and um we have an account down there where they go, we take bottles, they fill them up, and then we deliver them to all these different centers up in Western North Carolina that that where people can go exchange a bottle for free.

Propane Aid And Grassroots Logistics

SPEAKER_15 4:08

April 11th, 2025, we had Scott Burnett here, and he never expected to be fighting a fire at his own fire station. After 36 years in fire fighting, the interim chief of Mills River Fire Department faced this surreal scenario in January when their substation burned down, just months after Hurricane Helene devastated western North Carolina.

Mills River Substation Fire And Rebuild Plan

SPEAKER_05 4:32

Give a listen to Scott from back on April 11th. Interim Fire Chief, Mills River Fire Chief Scott Burnett. Good morning, Scott. Good morning. How are you? I'm doing really good. It's good to have you here with us. We've just been thinking about you guys for a long time at Mills River Fire Department. We uh uh felt such a tug at our heartstrings back in January when you guys lost uh one of your substations. Uh and uh we wanted to get you guys in here and talk with you about the recovery from that and and how much you guys have been through since last September. Uh it's just been uh a whirlwind for you guys, and you had a little extra dumped on you with the loss of the substation. So uh so tell us what's going on at Mills River Fire Department.

SPEAKER_10 5:19

Yeah, the last six months certainly have uh been a challenge for our community and our our fire department. Yeah. The uh the the impacts uh from Halene and Mills River were very similar to throughout the region. We were um all hands on deck for uh several weeks, just like everybody in in uh the region, and uh very proud of our firefighters, very proud of our community as how they responded to Hurricane Helene. It was uh it was it was incredible to to be a part of and uh to to be alongside uh just some amazing folks.

SPEAKER_05 5:52

Well now uh the fire, the uh the fire at the substation in January. Tell me.

SPEAKER_10 5:56

Yeah, that was uh that was a definitely a a significant loss to our fire department and our community. That that substation was uh built in the early 2000s and uh it was it was on land that was donated by uh one of our founding members. And um so uh uh you know that that that family, the the prior family is is very dear to Mills River Fire Department, Mills River Community, and and um uh losing that station uh that that they allowed us to build on their land was was pretty pretty devastating. And so uh right now we're in the process of uh uh having the the uh the what's left of of that building demolished and um we're gonna start new. We're gonna have a a a fire station on that same uh site. Okay. Uh you know the prior family is is uh very uh kind to continue to let us use that that um uh land for a fire station. And so uh we're gonna rebuild and we're going to have a fire station um hopefully this summer we'll be able to start. And uh it's under design right now. And so hopefully in about 12 to 18 months we'll uh have a fire station there again.

SPEAKER_05 6:59

Noah, our next guest uh was with us on June 20th. Mike Outlaw came to visit with us and he was nominated by several members of the Hendersonville First Baptist Church. And what we found out about Mike is that uh he arrives at First Baptist Church uh anywhere between two and three AM most weekdays. While most of the Hendersonville is asleep, he is the guy who prepares the sanctuary and the facilities there at First Baptist before anyone else gets here.

SPEAKER_15 7:30

It was it was an awesome visit that morning and and loved hearing his story.

SPEAKER_14 7:34

I worked for the school system for 30 years doing the same thing at Flat Rock Middle School.

SPEAKER_05 7:38

Okay.

A Quiet Caretaker: Mike Outlaw’s 2 AM Starts

SPEAKER_14 7:39

So I started my career out at Edneville Elementary doing a after-school program with my mom. And uh I had a good friend named uh David Elmore, a lot of people know him as Elmo. Uh him and Robert Gilbert contacted me about going to Flat Rock, and I went over there and started driving a school bus and uh worked with Elmo for 28 years at Flat Rock. He's one of my best friends. And after I retired two years ago, I'd worked for First Baptist for almost 15 years. And the guy that was the position I'm in now, he decided to retire, and they said, You want it? I said, Sure. My dad's a retired minister. That's how I come into the uh to the area. Uh I've lived from West Virginia to Columbia, South Carolina, and I met my wife Natalie here, and they got another church and I stayed. I'm glad you did.

SPEAKER_15 8:28

I'm glad you did. No more hopping around. No, no. So you did you ever imagine I mean 30 years serving our community in the public school system? I mean, that's incredible. I'm sure you have incredible stories from from that time. But just I mean, did you ever see yourself staying with the school system? That I mean, was that something you had envi envisioned?

SPEAKER_14 8:47

Well, when I started, uh I did it to be around kids. I love kids. And I've always been uh working with kids in churches and stuff like that, and my cause my dad was a pastor and and I knew I didn't want to be a pastor like my dad, but I wanted to be involved. So I'd said, well, the school system's the best way for me to do it, and I've loved my I love it every every every year.

SPEAKER_15 9:07

That's amazing. And and how many years were you at Flat Rock Middle? Twenty-eight.

SPEAKER_05 9:12

That's incredible. Yes. Well, uh m uh Billy was telling me that uh that sometimes you know when special things are planned at the church on Sundays, it it requires that you get into the church sometimes in the wee hours of Sunday morning to get ready for uh a long day of services.

SPEAKER_14 9:31

Well, during the week I usually go in between two and three in the morning. Really? And I get the church ready. I have a great crew at the first Baptist church that I work with and I get everything started. And I'm a morning person as you can tell, but uh I let them finish it at the end of the day. But uh I usually go in uh during the week and uh get things started. I I I love you know the quietness of the church and uh just uh walking and preparing and then seeing everybody come in. It's uh that's a great yeah.

Batcave Relief Hub Born From Loss

SPEAKER_05 10:01

What a guy. I really enjoyed meeting Mike Outlaw. Well, let's skip to September the twelfth when our number seven most downloaded uh podcast was uh featured someone else who stepped up after Hurricane Helene. Uh few people could have predicted that a destroyed vintage shop in Batcave would become ground zero for one of the most remarkable grassroots disaster relief efforts in the region. Lynn and Mark Staten. Wasn't that a great privilege to meet them, Noah?

SPEAKER_15 10:32

It was amazing. And and where they ended up, I mean, they became this hub and ended up becoming the headquarters for the Batcave Disaster Relief Group. They transformed their parking lot. Uh, they it was the old Sinclair gas station, and what an amazing story.

SPEAKER_05 10:48

Let's listen.

SPEAKER_15 10:50

Tell us about the evolution of Batcave Disaster Relief Group. I mean, you guys personally experienced uh tremendous loss, and then as and tell us your story about how this evolved.

SPEAKER_00 11:00

When the hurricane hit on a Friday, um, we did get a text from um one of our friends across the road, across the river, and um she prepared me, she sent me a picture of my building. And of course, the post office side is uh Baquet Post Office was standing, but my antique vintage shop, I worked out a double bay garage. It was an old Sinclair's gas station at one time. That was completely gone. She had mentioned that they saw some people going in and out. We jumped in the car, I believe that was on a Sunday. And uh once he got our driveway back together, we proceeded to go down there, but every road we took, we got stopped because the road was just missing. Yeah. So finally on Thursday, that following Thursday, we were able to walk to get down to the bridge to park, and then we actually had to walk um on scaffolding across one of these. It was a big hole between the road and the bridge. And um, we just had to walk down. It wasn't very far from the bridge, and then we just started dealing with what we saw.

SPEAKER_09 12:13

As we were we were trying to figure it out just like everybody else was, and we were fortunate a group came in from Franklin, and we were just trying to salvage our stuff. Yeah, and they were like, Hey, you have the biggest parking lot in the area for a shower trailer. We were like, Wow, that's a good idea, we'll do it. So they helped us um finish cleaning up our mess, and then they brought us the shower trailer down, and then people were coming around and they had uh problems getting supplies, so we started hauling supplies in and started our little donation hub. And then once people found out that we were there, then we started getting volunteers that came in. And for the first couple of months, they slept in their car, they slept in tents, they were there every day for us running saw crews or just whatever the need was, they did their best to fill it. And we had we had never met these people before. It was just like-minded people with good hearts.

Volunteers, Showers, And A Parking Lot Supply Chain

SPEAKER_15 13:08

What an amazing story. Now let's jump to July 25th when we had Shane and Floramay Zakcoli stop looking at the piles and look at the people. And those are the powerful words from Shane, and they captured the heart of Spokes of Hope. And it's a faith-based disaster relief organization rebuilding communities long after the media cameras have departed. They never planned to become disaster relief specialists, but when the hurricane Florence devastated their South Carolina community in 2018, flooding 1,300 homes, they felt called to action. And so what began as a simple suburban pulling a trailer with supplies has now evolved into a ministry that rebuilds entire communities. Their journey exemplifies how ordinary people can make extraordinary impacts when they respond to the needs around them. Let's listen to this.

Spokes Of Hope: Becoming Local To Serve

SPEAKER_12 14:01

We were active, very active in our church and in our community. And then when this happened, uh I asked my church, I said, Man, we could really be impactful. We can make a difference. Could we just stand up and become a resource hub uh for food and for supplies and everything in the turn into construction management with all these two groups? You know, you got all these groups coming, and I've noticed here even in West North Carolina with Bacon and with the local community. We surround them because they they are the local stuff, and we stand up and become their backbone for a minute just long enough to say, okay, we're here to help. We have our resource. Um it's just a moment where we that's where we bad with community. We we become local to the the the area that's affected. Knowing that we're gonna leave something, knowing that as we leave, we want our footprint to be small and that the local they're stood up again and they they become uh self-sufficient on their own, but it's a moment just like Moses in the desert where he couldn't hold his arms up. And we have to hold up that arms community. And we never knew we were gonna do it, but God knew. We had a suburban and a black little open trailer, and we'd throw a freezer on it with a generator, and we would drive around a community stuff as this and fill freezer because you know a lot of people maybe not got affected by the storm itself with physical damage, but they lost power for two weeks and they lost all their meat and their food, and and and we started there, and and then next thing you know, we got a chainsaw, and then we got a little trailer, and then we got a Skidster, and and all these things that God's just brought to the table to where now uh we can murmur from our lips. Pretty incredible on sweetie that we can say we helped rebuild a town and it was chimney rock and 14 stores.

SPEAKER_05 15:39

Moving to the number five most downloaded podcast, uh, we see a tenure milestone for a conversation that hits straight at the heart of service and community from our hometown hero on November 7th, Wes Harden. Wes is a retired farmer and operator who uh woke up one September morning with a clear conviction. Pack the trucks, load the gear, and go wherever help is needed. And he drove into the western North Carolina Mountains from East Tennessee and is still helping people with different organizations like Haleen Rising. Let's listen to the story from Wes Harden.

SPEAKER_13 16:18

I got up on the morning, September 28th, and God touched me and said, You know what? You're retired. I've given you equipment, given you trucks. Uh you're from two of the oldest families in East Tennessee and western North Carolina. These are your people, these are my people, they need help. You need to be out there. And my wife looked at me and she said, You kind of got a perplexed look on your face this morning. Is there something going on? And I said, Well, yeah. I I get the feeling that we need to move. And she said, Well, what do you need mean move? And I said, We need to load up equipment. And she said, Where are we going? I said, I don't know. I don't have a clue. But what needs to be done is not going to do itself, and it's not going to get done with us sitting here. And we loaded up and we we started then. It took us about five days to get off of the little place that we live in Stony Creek up over in Elizabeth and Tennessee. And uh ever since that day, it's just been and it's gotten to the point that I kind of scare people like Jake and some of my other people that work with me because it's just been we load up and don't always know where we're going, but we find where we need to be. And uh it's been such a blessing since we've been doing this. No matter where we've shown up, we have worked uh East Tennessee, Western North Carolina, South Carolina. Uh when the floods happened up in Kentucky and West Virginia, we responded to that. We have uh hauled supplies for people in Texas. It's been just uh an incredible year and almost two months. And uh no matter where we showed up, the amazing piece has been if we needed additional machinery, it would show up. If we needed additional operators, chainsaw, skid steer, whatever, they would show up. If we needed additional funding, it would show up. Everything that we've needed since day one has just been provided. And and with Helene Rising with Jake, we happened to meet him through Hurricane Helene Veterans Recovery Group. They put us on a job together. We've been working together ever since. Uh and we're pretty much inseparable now.

Called To Go: Wes Harden’s Rolling Relief

SPEAKER_15 18:07

Yeah. Randy, I know a lot of our listeners are hearing uh this theme of our hometown heroes and continued stories about those that made such a difference in the with the hurricane recovery. Michael Brown joined us on October 10th, and the hurricane changed the calendar and the calling of a retired highway patrolman who thought he'd finally slowed down. So Michael Brown's family opened up their barn and watched it transform into a base camp where the Amish volunteers built 175 tiny homes.

SPEAKER_05 18:44

Amazing story. Let's listen.

SPEAKER_11 18:48

Yeah, so how that got started was uh, you know, the hurricane happened and you know, we had damage like everybody, you know. We were without power for like 12 days, and during that process of cleaning up, you know, I just kept I I guess I I felt guilty that I was cleaning up my own stuff, you know, and and I'm like, we we need to be helping others. And I told my mom and dad, Brian and 18, and I said, We need to uh we need to help people, you know. I just felt like it was incumbent upon us to do that. And so um I saw some posts on Facebook where people were looking for warehouse space, space spl you know, space to land helicopters and that sort of thing. We we have that, you know. And uh so when they came, you know, we had a kitchen and some other things, but we didn't have a place for them to stay. So they they actually the first day they came, they you know, tractor, trailer load of lumber came and a bus load of people. Wow. And so they they got out and uh basically built inside of our nine thousand square foot building, they built temporary sleeping quarters. Wow. So uh so that so that's how it started, and uh so we built sheds, temporary uh housing for people that you know didn't have a place, or and uh so we I think we've Built about 175. So when I found out about the Amish and and their uh organization called Great Needs Trust, which later they uh uh renamed it Great Needs Ministry, you know, and uh I just found out, man, the Amish were just such great people, just service oriented, family oriented, and they just really wanted to help others, and uh so they were legitimate and uh all volunteer by the way. Uh nobody gets paid for anything that that uh none of the Amish, none of the board, none of the members, uh, and uh and the volunteers. They uh they pay. Actually, it's a mission trip for them. So they would come and uh uh we built sheds there in our building and uh we housed a mayor and fed them there, and uh, you know, it it was just a great thing, you know. And like I said, we built um at some point in probably February, uh we uh went down into chimney rock batcave looking for work, you know, and uh because we knew we wanted to transition into rebuilding after, you know, we moved out of the tiny homes.

Amish Builds: 175 Tiny Homes From A Barn

SPEAKER_05 21:05

And when the bridge disappears and the radios go quiet, that's when the community comes together. And Ashley and Isaac Guffey from Batcave have amazing stories of their recovery and helping others in the Broad River Gorge.

SPEAKER_03 21:21

We l we live above the river because we live on top of Middle Fork. And um so we had a dri we have a shared driveway and it basically turned into a river. We're very lucky compared to a lot of them.

SPEAKER_05 21:33

Well, what kinds of things have you guys been doing to help out your neighbors there in the Middle Fork community?

SPEAKER_07 21:40

Everything.

SPEAKER_05 21:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 21:42

So on top of the bridge, I have it's me and let's see, we got we got two other firefighters, but they're below the bridge or didn't have access either. But um, so I had we had to take care of 140-ish people above the bridge because from the bridge down was gone. The the the completely inaccessible they they literally had to cut in a road. So Gurton firefighters cut in up a little Pisgah to connect a road. We had a road that dead-ended up on through the mountain, and then they had to connect it so we could get side by sides in to get supplies.

SPEAKER_06 22:21

Because they would not airdrop.

SPEAKER_03 22:23

Yeah, we couldn't get any airdrops.

SPEAKER_06 22:24

There wasn't room.

SPEAKER_05 22:25

So they just couldn't get helicopters in.

SPEAKER_03 22:27

No, the National Guard could get there with the Chinooks, but they would not do uh sling drops for some reason. They had to actually land, and we didn't have a big enough space for a Chinook.

SPEAKER_15 22:37

When did you realize? I mean, and you had this initial shock. I mean, you're assessing things, and then and you do you serve full-time in the fire department or volunteer? Yeah, it's volunteer, yeah. Right, which is thank you. That's incredible in and of itself. But but you realized there was a number of you firefighters together at that moment, but you you when you realized this is the situation, you guys started assessing and then making a plan. Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 23:00

We honestly were trying to get down to our child. He was with my parents and we had no clue.

SPEAKER_03 23:07

You didn't know no communication. No, nothing. They lived all the time. We had no communication. There was no communication, we couldn't get there. Um I tried hiking through the woods and couldn't do it.

SPEAKER_07 23:19

Couldn't do it.

SPEAKER_15 23:21

I and I know we just have literally just maybe 30 seconds or so, but is there anything else you want to make sure the community knows and and and sharing your story? And again, again, thank you for all you've done.

SPEAKER_07 23:32

I guess just keep pushing. We'll get back to normal.

SPEAKER_03 23:35

Keep showing up.

SPEAKER_07 23:37

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_03 23:37

Don't forget about us. Yeah, do you know? I appreciate you saying about ground zero and stuff because that's why uh Bathaven Gurtain really doesn't get covered much. Yeah. We're we're here. We went. Kind of there in the shadow, you know? Yeah.

Middle Fork Survival: Bridges Out, Community In

SPEAKER_05 23:49

Okay, Noah, jumping away from our uh Hurricane Helene recovery theme for just a moment to go to the number two most downloaded podcast we had. Uh this one was really special. Basketball dreams at East Henderson High School. We had Coach Mark Quintus Jones and star player Caden Brown in our studios on March 14th, and they were preparing to represent the United States in the United World Games in Italy and Austria.

SPEAKER_15 24:20

And they were just coming off of an incredible season, and it was so neat to have them in the studio.

SPEAKER_01 24:26

Thank y'all for having me, and I'm so happy to be here. And um, and uh Mr. George, I thank you for just all that you've done for for East and um just for no just not on the basketball team, but for all sports at East. So we really appreciate that.

SPEAKER_15 24:39

Absolutely. Man, we're so proud of our students, and we're so grateful for the program you guys have created. Um talk let's talk about um I well, and by the way, there's also some other incredible news you guys we're gonna share about to do uh today as well that we want to talk about. But first off, let's talk about the season you had and then let's talk about uh you who you have here with us this morning.

SPEAKER_01 24:59

Yeah, the season, I I I haven't really reflected on it much, uh, but uh having a uh 27-game win streak um uh it's been it was amazing. Uh just just having the guys fight and and and be gritty each and every day and taking the season one day at a time, it it it was remarkable to to witness. Um I tell you, um just having Caden Brewer here with me, uh he's been an honor uh to coach uh the past four years. I uh I tell myself each day, um, I don't know what I'm gonna do without him. Um just the fact that he he has uh uh taken our program uh by the horns and and actually just made it to what what I've been trying to do for the past uh um six years, and um he has done an amazing job of just leading the way um especially um his sophomore junior senior year. Uh he he he's remarkable as a student, as a person, and also as a player, as you know.

SPEAKER_15 25:53

On top of that, I I was told you guys are were invited and selected to compete in the United World Games. Yeah. On top of everything you guys uh accomplished.

SPEAKER_01 26:05

Yes, that's that's another I that now for me I I was devastated uh the last game of the season. Of course. Um just because I I didn't think I was gonna get to coach him again. But now being able to coach him in uh like the United World Games somewhere in a in another country um is um it's gonna be awesome.

SPEAKER_15 26:24

The flood water may be gone, but the hard work is still here. We sat down with Jacob Reuter on November 17th, he's the co-founder of Helene Rising to trace the real story of recovery after the hurricane and how a family road tripped home with a truck full of chainsaws and supplies and turned that urgency into a year of steady practical help across Appalachia.

East Henderson Basketball’s Global Moment

SPEAKER_04 26:46

We've actually been as far as War West Virginia when they got the flood earlier this year in the winter time. Uh a good friend of mine, Wes Harden, he's heavily involved with uh AUI Appalachian United initiative, and we got a call uh for some desperate need of help up there to open up a small community and get some people some needed supplies and stuff like that. So we organized and stayed up there a couple weeks, slept in a firehouse. Um, they uh pulled a fire truck out and we basically set up some cots and formed a relief center right there and helped them do what we could. Yeah. All the way up into create a driveway for uh a gentleman who was on hospice, and by the time we got the driveway in and complete, he was able to see his family, his doctors, his deacon, and he passed away that night.

SPEAKER_08 27:33

Hey Jacob, so if somebody were listening, somebody was listening to this radio segment and they decided they had the capability, the ability, or the time to help you or contribute somehow to your organization. What's the best way for them? Like how should they go about contacting you, getting in touch with you? What what should people do if they can help?

SPEAKER_04 27:51

Well, we're on Facebook. We have a Helene Rising Facebook page that has all of our contact info. There's a Venmo in there if anybody would like to contribute or donate financial and uh if you just want to message us, we'll be more than happy uh to have any sort of volunteer help at all. Um hands are definitely needed for sure.

SPEAKER_08 28:11

What are you what is your organization in most dire need of at this moment in time?

SPEAKER_04 28:16

The project in uh Bat Cave will be needing some materials to build a bridge. Just it it varies from job to job.

SPEAKER_05 28:24

You got w we we're right around the corner from the holidays and and winter. Yeah. Uh I'm sure you're helping folks to be prepared for that.

SPEAKER_04 28:34

Yes, sir. Um uh propane, natural gas, all that stuff is definitely also needed. Heating stuff, um, blankets, coats, trying to make sure people have good proper uh clothing and apparel to wear because as y'all know, it's not very nice in wintertime here. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 28:51

Well, Noah, that uh wraps up our top ten most downloaded hometown hero podcasts of the year 2025. And it was such a joy to be in this studio with you for special people that shed tears at this table. Oh, it's a real honor to be uh a broadcaster and to be able to touch people like this show has.

Helene Rising: From Chainsaws To Driveways

SPEAKER_15 29:15

It's amazing, and and how I felt it was so appropriate for Christmas that we took some time to look back and again this holiday season. So much to be thankful for. And I know you and I've had the privilege of hearing amazing stories every single Friday morning. We're gonna continue it into 2026. And again, wanted to just take a moment to look back on these stories and and and I love it. I love the front. We have we're here every Thursday morning. Uh regular we've been doing this radio program since twenty eleven. Whether it's Thanksgiving or Christmas, uh, we still do it, and then every Friday morning at eight forty five now. Tomorrow it's gonna be at eight thirty. Uh we're gonna rebroadcast this. But it it we love sponsoring the Hometown Hero Series.

SPEAKER_05 29:55

We thank you so much for doing it too. Happy holidays, everyone. Merry Christmas.