NCCF’s Disaster Relief Fund fuels Hurricane Helene recovery in Madison County
When Hurricane Helene struck Madison County, the floodwaters from the French Broad River left behind destruction that will take years to rebuild.
“It was violent, violent water that carved canyons through our downtown,” said TJ Phillips, board president of Rebuild Hot Springs Area. “Every building in our downtown was destroyed in some way.”
In the aftermath, two nonprofits, Marshall Relief Alliance and Rebuild Hot Springs Area, formed. Each was built by locals working tirelessly to restore their towns.
In March, the Madison County Community Foundation, an affiliate of the North Carolina Community Foundation, awarded $40,000 each to Marshall Relief Alliance and Rebuild Hot Springs Area from NCCF’s Disaster Relief Fund. In total, MCCF distributed $180,000 from the fund to support long-term recovery efforts.
Rebuild Hot Springs: A Volunteer-Led Push to Rebuild
Rebuild Hot Springs was created not only to help the town recover from Helene, but also to serve the community during future crises.
Phillips explained, “We’re an all-volunteer organization that was put together by the community with that goal—how do we help? How do we make sure we don’t lose our businesses? How do we make sure we don’t lose our people?”
The Disaster Relief Fund grant helped the group shift from survival mode to active recovery.
“The money went into a fund that’s been helping to provide relief to the folks who lost income as a result of this flood,” Phillips said. “They work for the businesses here in town that haven’t been able to get back to work yet.”
He added that as unemployment benefits ran out and businesses remained closed, many residents faced the difficult decision of whether to leave town to find work. The grant helped keep them rooted in Hot Springs.
Marshall Relief Alliance: Volunteer Coordination and Safe Recovery
In Marshall, a similar story unfolded. Tasha Pumphrey, executive director of Marshall Relief Alliance, said, “Our primary service from the beginning has been equipping and coordinating volunteers. So when people come in, they sign up with us to help in our community. And our goal is to keep them as safe as possible.”
The grant enabled the nonprofit to continue addressing a shifting landscape of recovery needs. “We were exceptionally thrilled because we’re a new nonprofit. We haven’t been able to go for big grants,” Pumphrey said. “… It felt thrilling to know there are people backing us.”
She emphasized that the funds are helping them rebuild stronger than before. “We’re trying to support both our homeowners and business owners in being able to get the materials they need to get these buildings back to safe conditions and hopefully improve upon them a little,” she said.
Madison County Community Foundation: Supporting Local-Led Recovery
The Madison County Community Foundation saw the strength and potential in these grassroots efforts. “We didn’t want to start our own relief program when these folks were already doing the work,” said Phil Shepard, MCCF board member. “We just wanted to be part of it.”
The Disaster Relief Fund provides flexible funding that will help organizations address long-term recovery, resiliency and unmet needs. To date, over $30 million has been raised for the Disaster Relief Fund and a total of $6.75 million has been allocated. That includes $3 million awarded through NCCF’s 17 western affiliates. Additional allocations are expected to be made throughout 2025 and beyond.
“We were amazed that we were going to be getting this amount of money to help Madison County,” Shepard added. “It’s a long recovery, but these grants are helping people take the next step.”
Those steps became tangible in early May when both Marshall and Hot Springs held town “reopening” celebrations. “We’re not back to normal,” said Phillips, “but we’re moving. And this grant helped us do that.”