Yesterday morning, Milton hit the Tampa area. It will probably take time to understand the damage. Those of us on the outside will probably never get the full picture.
Two weeks ago, Hurricane Helene, the most deadly storm since Katrina, pummeled Western North Carolina, where I lived for four years. What I know has come from old friends and neighborhood Facebook groups that I never left. I left my heart in Asheville in 2014. Right now, it isn't good.
Assisted living facilities with unflushable toilets and dazed residents wandering the parking lots. Small businesses sharing food, despite their own losses. Drives to raise money for artists who have lost their studios and life's work. FEMA checks that aren't enough for the service workers who cater to the tourism economy.
My first job in WNC was as a teller at the Wachovia Bank — now Wells Fargo — in Marshall, the county seat of Madison County. When you work at a small town bank, you get to know everyone. Downtown is destroyed. Zuma's, my favorite coffee shop, has smashed windows and the inside is ruined. Nearby, the town of Hot Springs is ruined.
My friend posted to her Facebook today: “Make yourself useful or make yourself scarce.” Her hashtag adds: #sendmoney. She owns an aerial arts studio and is raising money for her staff.
If you're not bringing it directly, help with your wallet, not old clothes and pantry items. Let Asheville's residents and the organizations that are on the ground decide what to buy.
