A little over a year after Hurricane Helene devastated western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee, hope is being rebuilt one home at a time. Samaritan’s Purse Chief Operating Officer Edward Graham stood atop the mountain where Vanessa Bowens had played as a child, praying one day she’d live in a home looking down over the…
Crisis & Disaster Response
Pack Animals Gifted to Carolina Organization Helping with Helene Relief
A February storm had softened the ground considerably and loosened the roots on an old poplar tree. Wind gusts finished it off. Mike and Michele Toberer were hours out of town when the timber fell and broke a large opening into a fence holding their mules. Three of them escaped into the highway. “That was…
Crisis & Disaster Response
Secretary Scott Turner Sees Ongoing Response to Hurricane Helene
Scott Turner, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, joined Samaritan’s Purse staff and volunteers in North Carolina on March 11 to see our continued Hurricane Helene relief efforts. Secretary Turner visited homeowners in Buncombe County (Asheville area) who are still suffering from the storm’s catastrophic strike. “We’re here to learn, to…
Media
Press Release Samaritan’s Purse Dedicates First, Newly-Built Home for Family Impacted by Hurricane Helene
Samaritan’s Purse Dedicates First, Newly-Built Home for Family Impacted by Hurricane Helene BOONE, N.C., May 30, 2025—Samaritan’s Purse plans to dedicate the first of many newly built homes in western North Carolina on Monday, June 2 for Benny and Keva Messer. The Messer family, like hundreds of others, lost nearly everything when floodwaters from Hurricane…
Operation Christmas Child
Reminded of God’s Faithfulness after Helene
Letis Avila lifted her hands to the Lord in prayer as Hurricane Helene bore down on her western North Carolina home last September. Though the storm took a lot from the Salvadoran mother of two, Letis is still praising God today. Soon after the sky cleared and waters receded, two Samaritan’s Purse staff members arrived…
Media
Press Release Samaritan’s Purse Responding to Widespread Devastation from Hurricane Helene’s Deadly Landfall
Samaritan’s Purse Responding to Widespread Devastation from Hurricane Helene’s Deadly Landfall The international Christian relief organization is helping families in need in Western North Carolina, Eastern Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida. BOONE, N.C., Sept. 28, 2024—Samaritan’s Purse is responding to overwhelming needs in Western North Carolina, Eastern Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida following the catastrophic damage from…
Crisis & Disaster Response
Watch the LIVE Hurricane Helene Special on TBN Tonight!
Please tune in tonight to watch Franklin Graham, Edward Graham, and Cissie Graham Lynch on a live TBN special report. The program starts at 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday night (Oct. 9) on TBN and TBN+. Hear the latest concerning Samaritan’s Purse ongoing response to Hurricane Helene and our preparations for Hurricane Milton. After watching…
Crisis & Disaster Response
Samaritan’s Purse Replaces Eleven More Vehicles After Hurricane Helene
Samaritan’s Purse continues to support families in North Carolina and Tennessee still reeling after Hurricane Helene, the storm that devastated the region in late September 2024. “These vehicles are provided by God’s people in Jesus’ Name,” said Samaritan’s Purse President Franklin Graham during a dedication of eleven vehicles to survivors of the hurricane. Harry Varney…
Hurricane Helene Survivor Praises God for Abundant Blessings
The water continued to rise and Sherri Hughes panicked. She was visiting her sister when they suddenly noticed that the floor was wet. Before long, it was soaked. “When we looked out the door, we saw nothing but water. I thought we were gonna die,” she said. She could see across the street to her…
New Home Blesses Couple Whose Lives Were Upended by Helene
Helene’s heavy rains poured on Mark and Mechelle Tipton’s Marshall, North Carolina, neighborhood, flooding their mobile home with up to 24 inches of water. They escaped through the back door and up the hill to safety. However, they lost many of their belongings—and their home—to last year’s historic storm. The nearby French Broad River flowed…
