Mission Yearbook: Black Mountain Presbyterian Church continues providing recovery and relief

In late September, Hurricane Helene swept across the southeastern United States and brought unprecedented devastation to the mountain communities of western North Carolina and elsewhere. Black Mountain Presbyterian Church found itself the hub of a massive disaster relief effort, providing a staging ground for recovery teams and serving tens of thousands of meals, just days after unveiling the church’s new mission statement — or question, rather: Has everyone been fed?

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Several months later, much of the world has moved on to more recent disasters, more current events, and the threat of new crises. But for those who bore the brunt of Helene’s impact, recovery and rebuilding continue to be a slowly unfolding, daily reality. And while the day-to-day work has evolved, Black Mountain Presbyterian Church continues to minister in the aftermath.

On Sunday, Feb. 2, Kitty Fouche, a church member, offered an update on the church’s relief efforts during a congregational meeting. Her report was later shared on the church’s Facebook page. As of the report, Fouche said the church had received funds in support of relief efforts from 4,558 donors from all 50 states and the District of Columbia totaling $2,870,632.

“People from states who are well acquainted with hurricanes responded, like Louisiana, who donated a collective $21,000, and Florida, who gave $166,000,” Fouche reported. “Residents from California, not knowing what lay ahead for them, donated just shy of $284,000.”

In fact, the Rev. Mary Katherine Robinson, the church’s pastor and head of staff, shared that the largest single donation — $250,000 —came from a church in San Diego. A member there had lived through the devastation of the 2004 wildfires there and wanted to support other churches recovering from natural disasters.

Reflecting on how the church first became so involved in relief efforts, Robinson noted its strategic location. The church sits on the edge of downtown Black Mountain, across the street from the fire station and the police station. That street also leads to Montreat Conference Center and Montreat College.

Since all the emergency personnel were operating nearby, the church became the best hope for getting any cell service. Once church staff and members were able to leave their homes, they came to the church and began offering cold water from their melting ice machine, then grilled frozen hot dogs on the church’s propane-powered grills. Others eventually brought food from their own thawing freezers.

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“We would allow people from the community to come in — some people we didn’t even know — but they showed up and they wanted to help … some of the people that I don’t have the same views as politically, socially,” Robinson said. “It just took an opening of our heart to allow these people to come in. And it’s transformed their life as well.”

Robinson explained that she felt her role as head pastor in those early days was to remind everyone to approach the situation from the perspective of abundance, trusting that there was enough for everyone.

For days, the church fed hundreds of people. It housed first responders and collected and distributed supplies. As the operation grew, Black Mountain Presbyterian Church partnered with Montreat for additional storage and with a local restaurant called the Railyard for serving meals.

In the first weeks after the storm, the work was around the clock. Entire families of church members showed up to volunteer. So did countless older members. A slew of young adults began getting involved by day three.

Black Mountain Presbyterian Church’s associate pastor, the Rev. David Carter Florence, explained that they tried to discern what they could do that was traditionally pastoral work alongside being a distribution center and base for relief efforts. In the end, they tried to do it all.

The people of Black Mountain Presbyterian Church remain as committed as ever to the “mission question” they embraced and then embodied right as Hurricane Helene hit.

“Has everyone been fed?” Fouche asked again as she closed her report to the congregation. “No,” she answered. “Feeding is an ongoing necessity. We can’t stop. Thank you to all our partners in Christ’s service.”

Layton Williams Berkes, Editor, Communications, Interim Unified Agency (Click here to read original PNS Story)
                     

Let us join in prayer for:

Hansel Lopez, Dishwasher, Stony Point Center, Interim Unified Agency 
Gabe Loredo, Archives Technician, Presbyterian Historical Society  

Let us pray:

Gracious God, we hear your call to love our neighbors, and we know that you intend for us to care for both their physical and their spiritual needs. Help us to respond to this hungry, thirsty world with love that pours from the river of living water that you have placed in the hearts of those who believe. In the name of Jesus Christ, who is living water for our bodies and our souls. Amen.