Paddlers Raise $500K After Hurricane Helene Hits NC

A single photo of a man sitting in a pickup truck with water barrels changed everything for Hurricane Helene survivors in Western North Carolina.

Lance Buskey had just moved to Asheville to work as a carpenter when the hurricane tore through the region in September 2024. He and friends from the local paddling community immediately started making meals and distributing water from 55-gallon barrels.

When they posted a photo of volunteer Cooper Leist delivering water, donations poured in. Within 24 hours, strangers had sent $5,000. Then $15,000 more.

Buskey faced a choice: hand the money to an existing organization or build something new. He chose to mobilize.

On September 30, the group set up operations at French Broad River Academy, a local middle school where founding member Sam Iatarola taught. What started as friends helping neighbors became a full-scale disaster response.

The donations kept coming from around the world. By early October, they'd raised $100,000. Within days, that number hit $500,000.

Volunteers worked long hours coordinating supplies, medical aid, logistics and operations. By mid-October, they'd completed more than 500 missions across 12 North Carolina counties and one in Tennessee.

The organization impressed even military professionals. A U.S. Special Forces member told the morning team in early October: "The model is working well here. You guys are more organized than most battalion staffs."

The Ripple Effect

Hurricane Helene WNC became a blueprint for grassroots disaster response. Volunteers traveled from eight states to join the effort, bringing skills from the outdoor community to help people who'd lost everything.

The group later became the Helene Rebuild Collaborative, a nonprofit focused on helping people who fell through the cracks. They provided funding, building materials and manpower to those who didn't qualify for FEMA assistance or lacked flood insurance.

The nonprofit ceased operations in 2025 after completing its mission, but it left behind proof that communities can organize sophisticated relief efforts when neighbors show up for one another.