Executive Director Message

TRPA, MATCH and McDowell Impact

Pivot to Serve Mountain Communities Affected by Hurricane Helene

TRPA Responds: “We’re All in This Together”

“Right after the hurricane, TRPA went right into asking ‘What can we do to help?’” says Miki Pontorno, TRPA Program Coordinator. “We live here. Our own communities had been devastated, and we were all in this together.”

Early on, it became obvious that people needed help applying for FEMA financial assistance. As widespread power and internet outages complicated the application process, Miki and TRPA Enrollment Specialist Pahola Cruz stepped in to help, setting up FEMA application assistance efforts at Tractor Food and Farms in coordination with Shepherd’s Staff—a Spruce Pine non-profit dedicated to providing food and heating assistance to Mitchell County residents who are in need. 

The partnership between TRPA and Shepherd’s Staff was ideal, as the Shepherd’s Staff food pantry provided food at no cost. “People came to get food and then found out about us,” Miki explains. “We were able to help them create a FEMA account and assist with submitting their application.”

Help With Helene-Related Food Insecurities

While Shepherd’s Staff food pantry met immediate nutritional needs, the TRPA team was able to help individuals and families apply for D-SNAP, the North Carolina Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program which provides temporary food benefits to people impacted by natural disasters.

TRPA also saw the need to aid individuals needing Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA). The demand became clear as a leading manufacturing facility in Spruce Pine began laying-off employees after Helene. TRPA was there to provide help with DUA applications for individuals faced with unforeseen job loss.

“That led to opportunities for us to assist with Medicaid applications,” says Miki, “since the layoffs meant they lost their health insurance, too.”

Disaster relief funding TRPA received also enabled them to provide essential resources such as diabetic strips and kits, adult briefs, and blood pressure cuffs to many who had lost possessions due to the storm’s destructive effects. They continue supplying these items as needs arise. 

Despite the distress and devastation brought on by the storm, many TRPA encounters have ended in smiles of relief. “The landscape has changed — Helene changed the way it looks along the creek bends and in the hollers,” Miki says. “It will never be the same, but TRPA’s made things easier for a lot of people, and it feels good when you’re able to do that.”

MATCH Team Provides Support

Through Partnering and Collaboration

MATCH collaborated with Foothills Food Hub and West Marion, Inc. to distribute essential supplies such as food, water, flashlights, batteries, propane, and more to communities in need. Early efforts focused primarily on Old Fort and other areas of McDowell County heavily impacted by the crisis. Supply distribution encounters often led to additional referrals for wellness checks, as residents dealt with isolation resulting from power and phone outages, leaving them cut-off from friends and family.

Hosting FEMA Clinics and Screening for Additional Resources

MATCH Program Supervisor Amy Stevens explains how the team’s relief efforts expanded during the second week after the storm. “With the opening of FEMA applications, we recognized the need to assist residents in navigating this complex process, so MATCH partnered with West Marion, Inc. to host FEMA clinics at central locations throughout the community. Navigation services were offered in both English and Spanish, to ensure accessibility.”

Alongside FEMA applications, MATCH provided support in other areas. “We screened community members for additional resources, including Disaster Unemployment Assistance, D-SNAP, debris removal, home repairs, emergency aid, and more,” Amy says.

These services were vital, as needs were critical and the destruction sometimes unimaginable. “We supported an 80-year-old gentleman who had been living in his truck after his home was destroyed by the storm,” Amy recalls. “Our team helped him apply for and access FEMA funds, secure D-SNAP and ongoing FNS benefits, and locate housing. We were also able to provide essential supplies, a gas card, and ongoing care coordination to meet his needs.”

Working with EOC to Provide Enhanced Local Resource Navigation

In later weeks, as FEMA set up Disaster Recovery Centers (DRCs) throughout the county, the McDowell Emergency Operations Center (EOC) saw the need for enhanced local resource navigation and wraparound services. When MATCH was requested to embed staff at the Old Fort DRC, team members went to work screening for programs such as D-SNAP, SNAP, Emergency Assistance, Debris Removal, Food Support, Medicaid, and general case management and care coordination.

“Meanwhile,” Amy reports, “additional MATCH staff stayed at our office to assist with FEMA applications, connect residents to essential resources, and visit the homes of community members who were unable to travel to apply for FEMA assistance.”

As McDowell County continues to recover, MATCH remains a key referral source for FEMA partners, the EOC, and other responders, providing local resource navigation and care coordination to ensure continued support for the community.

McDowell Impact Expands Its Reach

In the days following Helene, McDowell Impact Peer Support Services was on the ground throughout McDowell County to provide support and resources to those affected by Hurricane Helene.

“Our Peer Support Specialists routinely go on outreach visits throughout McDowell County each Wednesday; but for the first couple of weeks after the hurricane we stepped-up our outreach efforts to a few days a week, rather being limited to our usual Wednesday schedule,” says Sarah Hensley, McDowell Impact team lead. “We went out to check on the peers we normally see, and then we went on to other communities we don’t usually visit. Our goal was to provide support to people we’ve already been serving, as well as to look for opportunities to help others in need.”

There was no shortage of needs to address. IMPACT team members supported peers and the community at large by delivering practical essentials and supplies such as food, water, hygiene items, first aid supplies, propane, and blankets.

The Many Faces of Recovery

Sarah relates the story of providing support for two peers in Old Fort whose home had been lost due to the devastating flooding in the area: “This is a couple we serve every week on outreach,” she says. “We went to check on them after the storm and found that their home had been completely destroyed and they had nowhere to go. Both of them needed antibiotics, so we connected with a medical provider and were able to get them their meds the following day. We’ve continued to follow up with them and check on them every week.”

McDowell Impact’s commitment to multi-agency collaboration was evident in their relief efforts. The team has an established history of collaboration with High Country Community Health, who provides weekly Nurse Practitioner visits at the McDowell Impact Recovery Community Center. The relationship has remained strong in the weeks following the hurricane, as the two organizations work together to serve the critical and varied needs of individuals in our Western North Carolina communities.

“Outreach has always been a main focus of the Impact team,” Sarah explains, “but in the weeks after Helene, we were able to branch out and expand our reach while still meeting our commitment to individual recovery support.” Collaboration proved vital to those outreach efforts.

The Impact team’s support for relief efforts has not ended. Team members are present at the McDowell Impact Recovery Community Center, continuing to distribute needed relief supplies from that location. 

TRPA Coordinates M&M’s Open Enrollment Event with Mexican Consulate Visit

CareReach Receives Grants to Assist with Disaster Relief Efforts

Following the hurricane, CareReach received $270,000 in funding to support disaster relief efforts. Community Foundation of Western North Carolina, Dogwood Health Trust, AMY Wellness Foundation, and Gateway Wellness Foundation have all provided generous support to CareReach and other local non-profits serving communities in the aftermath of Helene.

“We’ve seen wonderful support and resources come into Western North Carolina in response to the hurricane. However, we know that recovery will take time and the needs of people most affected will persist, while most of those who have come here from outside the area will eventually have to go home," says CareReach Executive Director Joseph Jones. “The support we’ve received from local funders has been a huge help in our efforts and an encouraging confirmation that CareReach plays a vital part in serving our communities. We have a key role to play, and we’re here to stay.”

As a non-profit partner in the health and safety-net system of Western North Carolina, CareReach relies on the generous gifting of donors and supporters to sustain our vital work. While many in our community are faced with barriers and gaps in whole-person, coordinated health care, we work with these individuals to help them reach their health goals; through our collaboration with local partners, we help make clinical and community services more accessible to those who need them. 

Please consider making an investment in the health of our mountain communities. With your help we will reach our goal.