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Remember Western North Carolina – An Update
When you turn on the hot shower in the morning, when your heat or air comes on, when the temperature drops and when you get in your own bed at night, please remember Western North Carolina and the thousands of people that do not have water or power or a house to call home anymore. We have lots to be thankful as we approach the Thanksgiving Season!
Over 92,000 people in Asheville were without water for a month and even now can only use water for flushing toilets as it is not drinkable. Many in Western North Carolina were without power for weeks.
The mayor of Canton, NC Zeb Smathers said it so powerfully – “The creeks became streams, the streams became rivers and the rivers became oceans. We have not seen flooding like this in Canton since Genesis.” There was 12 to 14 feet of water on the football field at Pisgah High School football stadium immediately following the flood. This is unimaginable except that I saw the pictures.
Our moderators Billy Stines and Brad Lee traveled with me October 8th and 9th to Haywood County and Buncombe County to meet with the DOMs and to survey what was going on. Much of it looked like a war zone along the river in Canton and Clyde in Haywood County. We saw incredible devastation in Asheville and Swannanoa was completely devastated as many of you probably saw via social media.
Please continue to pray for Western North Carolina and for Florida in the recovery and rebuild process which will be a long time. I’m so thankful and proud of our many churches that have already given and served and ministered in Western North Carolina.
We plan to continue to have ongoing partnerships in Haywood County and Buncombe County and through Baptists on Mission as well as direct ministry with the associations as requested from the Directors of Missions and the individual churches.
Please let us know if you have already served and in what way. Please let us know if you have teams or people who are interested in going and being paired up with a church or a ministry in Western North Carolina.
See the video links below from the Director of Missions/AMS, Dennis Thurman in Haywood County and also from the Director of Missions/AMS, Perry Brindley in Buncombe County.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving as we have so much to be thankful for. Even in the middle of all this destruction, God is sovereign, God is good, His love never fails, and His mercies are new every morning, great is His faithfulness. (Lamentations 3)
Interview with Perry Brindley
Interview 1 with Dennis Thurman
Interview 2 with Dennis Thurman
Special thanks to Brad Lee for the video footage!
Marty Dupree
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