PPM Disaster Response: Hurricane Helene - Western North Carolina

It’s nearing 6 months since Hurricane Helene impacted many communities in the US, and our thoughts are with everyone who is still trying to pick up after that devastating storm. 

Hurricane Helene brought significant challenges to the Western North Carolina region, and the recovery process is long and complex. Since the storm's initial impact, we've been working diligently to provide support where it's needed most. We have been collaborating with the local church and local organizations to assess the damage and coordinate relief efforts effectively.

Here's a brief overview of what we've been doing:

• Providing Essential Supplies: We've been distributing essential supplies like food, water, and hygiene kits to those displaced or otherwise affected by the storm. Thanks to the generous donations we've received, we've been able to reach numerous families and individuals in need.

• Supporting Shelter and Housing: We understand the critical need for safe and temporary housing after a storm of that magnitude. We've been working with some key organizations to support shelters and temporary accommodation options, ensuring that those who have lost their homes have a place to stay. We are also working with organizations that are focusing on rebuilding houses that were destroyed by the storm.  That work is possible through volunteers who have given their time and resources on a trip with Praying Pelican Missions!

• Community Clean-up: Cleaning a community after a hurricane is a monumental task that demands a coordinated effort on many fronts. It begins with assessing the widespread damage, from downed trees and power lines blocking roads to flooded homes and businesses filled with debris. Teams of volunteers and professionals must tackle the painstaking work of clearing individual properties, often involving shoveling mud, removing soaked furniture, and salvaging what little can be saved. Over the years of serving local communities after natural disasters, we know firsthand that it takes a village to restore a community, and that can take many years. That is why we go and hope to stay until the work is done. 

• Long-Term Recovery Planning: Beyond the immediate needs, we're also focused on the long-term recovery process. Praying Pelican Missions’ primary goal is to build up, encourage, and assist the local Church in serving and reaching their communities for Christ 365 days a year. We are actively working with the local Church toward sustainable solutions that will benefit communities beyond disaster relief efforts through the calendar year of 2025 and beyond. You are invited to join us! 

The road to recovery will be long, but we remain committed to supporting the affected communities every step along the way. We will continue to provide updates on our efforts and how you can continue to help. Please stay tuned for further information.

If you are interested in contributing to our disaster relief efforts, or joining us on a disaster relief trip, please reach out to us. Every contribution, big or small, whether financial or physical makes a difference.

As recovery efforts continue across Western North Carolina in the wake of Hurricane Helene, PPM fills a unique role, partnering with local churches and organizations long after other relief efforts have left. PPM teams are actively serving the effected communities with both physical efforts and relational encouragement and will continue doing so over the coming months.

We invite your team to join us - the scope of needs here are significant and there will be plenty of help needed for many months to come!

Azura Pacific University brought a team of 12 and did a significant amount of work alongside Minneapolis Baptist Church in Western North Carolina. They helped clear out mud and debris left from the storm at one of the houses they worked on to prepare the house for inspection before rebuilding started. 

We continue to be eyewitnesses and partakers in the recovery efforts in Western North Carolina in response to Hurricane Helene. Recently, we welcomed another team of volunteers who selflessly and passionately devoted their time to serving  community members who were affected by the hurricane. From burning cardboard to building a shed from scratch, our volunteers are contributing to getting communities back to normal. 

Antioch Church arrived on Friday the 24 of November in Western North Carolina. Here is a snippet of what their week looked like. 

“Dustin and Ryan are on our fire squad today at generation church, burning all the excess boxes from all the supplies we have! Harley is working hard to organize the food tent at Generation! Cleaning up from the rain that happened last night. Graham is our faithful trashman! Burning more cardboard! As many boxes as we got, we had to set up a full bonfire in the parking lot! On our last day, we’re hurrying to help Generation church get ready for their shipping containers to get in. It’s been a good few days full of fun and meaningful conversation! We know that we made an impact, even just a small one, on the community. Through the support of Restoration Church, our team had the privilege of completing a shed for Scotty, a veteran whose family was rescued by helicopter from their roof during a devastating storm. This project was a labor of love, providing Scotty and his family with a secure space as they worked to rebuild their lives. It was a blessing to serve a hero and his family.” 

What an amazing experience Antioch Church had in WNC! We love the opportunity to minister to the local church, especially in these times of need. Praise the Lord for those opportunities! There is still a lot of work to do in Western North Carolina. You are invited to join us in our effort to encourage, assist, and show the Love of Christ to those communities through tangible actions. 

You can relive the experience with Antioch here: https://www.ppm.org/mission-trip-journals/20582#entry-138555

We are absolutely grateful for the outpouring of donations and volunteers we have been receiving as we continue to assist in the recovery efforts post Hurricane Helene. People from all over the US have been reaching out to Praying Pelican Missions, asking how they can help. It is very encouraging to see churches and communities come together to help those in need. What we have seen and experienced at Praying Pelican Missions is that years down the road, when FEMA and other government agencies will have completed their tasks, there will still be families and communities that will need a helping hand to recover. That is why we like to plug in with local churches in the affected communities that can guide us to those needs. 

If you are interested in serving on a mission trip and don’t have the time to do it now, don’t worry. We have the full calendar year of 2025 open for families, youth groups, adults, and multigenerational groups to join us. Beyond hurricane relief, the work of the Lord is plentiful, but few are the laborers. (Luke 10:2)

Should you have any questions about those mission trips, please reach out to us. 

Our teams have been hard at work over the last two weeks in Western North Carolina and Appalachia Highlands with many hands making light work- though there is still so much to do, when we work together the load gets lighter. We are grateful for the opportunity and the trust that we have to work alongside our partners and those who are working to restore their lives in the community.

We have had the opportunity to work on mudding out a school, help with a downtown community clean up so that the town of Newland, NC could have a glimmer of normalcy during this season and host their fall event for the kids!