Hurricane Helene Recovery Update & Request For Support

Dear Friends and Community, 

As many of you may be aware, Rites of Passage Council is located near Asheville, North Carolina along the Ivy River. 

This area like so many others in Western North Carolina was devastated by the hurricane. Like everyone in the area beginning the afternoon of September 27^th, we too scrambled to ensure the safety of family and friends under the challenges of no power, no communications and no water. 

Roads everywhere were impassable and many remained in immediate danger. I have witnessed and heard stories time and again of the love of our greater community responding with heroism, generosity and kindness. Now four weeks after the hurricane many areas are still without drinking water and the losses of so many will never be recovered. 

In Gratitude for the amazing responsiveness and care of our First Responders here and in the surrounding counties we recognize the great difficulty they have of managing their own personal losses as they respond to the challenges of those in our community.

Rites of Passage Council has partnered with Living Medicine Institute and Responder Support Services to offer the first two-day retreat for these first responders to help them in dealing with the traumas they have experienced as part of their jobs caring for our community.

Here is a video from Asheville’s local news on October 24th featuring Rick Baker, one of our retreat sponsors and founder of Responder Support Services discussing the mental health of our local first responders:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zsVWjCuZYKQiBH-pk3btRoRQHXmEIEtE/view?usp=sharing

Our immediate donation needs:

To support this programming and help us recover from the hurricane disaster here in Western North Carolina we are directing donation funds for the following immediate needs:

-Providing the first two-day nature retreat in our area for first responders to assist them in dealing with PTSD-related trauma associated with search and rescue efforts. The first of these retreats is scheduled for Nov. 1-3. ($8000)

-Clean-up efforts along the river. ($5000)

-Our gravel road to the barn where we offer our outdoor programing has been greatly impacted by the storm and will need to be regraded in specific areas. ($5000)

-Our spring fed water system failed, and we need to install a well pump in a previously dug well and run an underground line 700ft to fill the existing reservoir. ($9000)

-Septic Field Installation ($5000)

We greatly appreciate your support during this time. Please feel free to share this campaign with anyone who may be interested in supporting this work and our organization.

Rites of Passage Council is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit and all donations are tax deductible.