ZIONVILLE — Nearly two years after Hurricane Helene, some residents still struggle to rebuild their family homes and find a semblance of stability.
“There are folks who still don’t have clean water; their septic and water are running together, or are in the beginning stages of repouring their foundation,” said Becks Lipshultz, director of operations for State Line Resource Station, a 501©3 nonprofit grassroots disaster relief organization.
SLRS began as a fledgling disaster hub immediately after Helene at the Zionville Ramp Company, thanks to the hospitality of Ashley Gallaher, Lipshultz said.
“It started just as a table with some water bottles before it turned into a full-scale distribution center,” Lipshultz recalled.
After closing the distribution in December 2024, SLRS transitioned to providing funds and building materials to flood relief victims.
One of the nonprofit’s leading initiatives, Brittany’s Fund, is a disaster relief grant program to help individuals and small businesses recover from Hurricane Helene with funds and building materials. Volunteers posthumously named the grant to honor Brittany Rosann Robinson, who died in a landslide during the storm.
“With the fact that we are a small organization, every penny raised for the Brittany Fund grant goes to flood relief victims,” she said. “All funds raised go to people who need the funds. We have been and are working with people on the ground in each county. This is a very collaborative project: not dropping off and deciding what folks need. We are working directly with long-term recovery, and working with people to assist folks across the community and strengthen resilience by establishing connections.”
Lipshultz said SLRS has worked closely with Ashe County contacts, including long-term recovery support groups, to determine how the grant could best assist storm-afflicted victims.
Altogether, the grant, with financial sponsorship from Mountain Mermaids, raised and distributed approximately $150,000 to flood relief victims, Lipshultz said.
At the same time, the nonprofit’s building supply initiative raised more than $75,000 for 23 regional rebuilding projects through the N.C. Community Foundation’s assistance, and $26,000 for 12 Johnson County, Tennessee sites, she said.
Although Lipshultz said that Helene indiscriminately damaged homes across the High Country, residents relying on low-water bridge access sustained some of the worst damage and a longer road to recovery.
“Many of those bridges are a very low priority for the DOT (Department of Transportation),” she said.
SLRS thoroughly vets each applicant seeking donations and building supplies through property assessment and victim identity verification, Lipshultz said.
Visit tinyurl.com/2f5cwcdv for donation information.