Ben Harper's Disaster Relief Efforts
Donation protected
I’m raising funds to reimburse myself for expenses related to Hurricane Helene disaster relief efforts and to continue my work helping our community recover from this devastating storm. I was fortunate to only have minor damage to my fence and minor flooding in my basement where my wood shop and stained glass studio are. This allowed me to spring into action and start helping my neighbors and the greater Asheville area. While I’ve had some support from friends and family, I’m still a ways off from breaking even.
I’ve spent $8,000 out of pocket(credit card) on the following expenses and how it’s helping with the relief efforts:
- 25” Chainsaw, blade, 36” bar, wedges and full PPE set. This is to help the monstrous task of clearing trees, most of which are giant oaks that my 16” chainsaw wasn’t up for the task.
- Generator for when we lost power and now being used to power a pump for transfering potable water.
- Pumps, small and large. Small ones I donated to folks doing water deliveries in order to speed them up, except for one I kept for the outdoor shower we built for myself, housemates and neighbors. The larger pump is for transferring water from tankers to IBC totes.
- New 275 gallon IBC Totes for bringing potable water to those in need. ($375/each)
- Paint for painting the IBC totes to prevent algae growth.
- 100’s of Hoses, reducers, fittings, repair kits, hose bibs etc for water distribution. I’ve organized folks as far as Raleigh to help 3D print our own reducers after all of the hardware stores ran out. I’ve donated well over 100 kits to anyone in the area that has IBC tanks but not fittings. This will continue as long as there is a need.
- Food(for myself and everyone in my home)
- Gas(for my vehicle, generator and chainsaws)
- A circular saw for my neighbor who couldn’t afford one
- Other random smaller needs
Now that shipping is slowly getting caught up I can rely more on in-kind donations as well so I don’t have to pay out of pocket. I have an Amazon wish list that folks can order things to ship directly to me and a running master spreadsheet of needs.
Unfortunately, I do not have the time to manage a proper fundraiser with videos and constant updates; however, you can follow my work on Facebook and Instagram (@benharper_1984) where I’m trying to post at least every other day.
Organizer
Ben Harper
Organizer
Asheville, NC