Help a Family Find Stable Ground after Hurricane Helene

People keep asking me about my experience, my needs and if I have a GoFundMe in regards to Hurricane Helene. I resisted sharing at first because I am not usually one to share publicly about personal matters and I know that I am more fortunate than other people, even though I experienced trauma as well. But with much persistence from many sources, I have been convinced to share my story and request for help.

Our Experience

When Hurricane Helene came through I lived in a shared home that was nestled right next to the Swannanoa River and in walking distance to Warren Wilson College in Swannanoa, North Carolina. As she came through my home, my belongings and the land that had supplied a good bit of my food and peace of mind were either washed away, damaged or destroyed in the flooding. Luckily, me, my teenager, and emotional support animal, my housemates, landmates and most of the critters are safe (some chickens didn’t make it and we don’t know about our bees.) I did lose all of my books and a few from the library (which included indigenous cookbooks, holistic healthcare, herbalism, survival/homesteading/farming, psychology and mental health, college textbooks, art books, journals, kid’s books & activities) , sewing tools and supplies (for one of my jobs and to tend to mending needs at home), my mattress and bedding for me and my teenager, my work desk filled with supplies and college papers, all of my electronics (like my laptops, muscle massager, heating/cooling fan, air purifier for my allergies), natural healthcare products and medicine making supplies, gardening supplies and stored food (from the garden, dried harvest from this and past seasons, and purchased items) and kitchen supplies, camping gear, tools, clothing and shoes, things for my Emotional Support Animal (bedding, automatic feeding devices, and her inhaler), art supplies (I often facilitate Expressive Art therapeutic activities), receipts and important documents, and sentimental and heirloom items that cannot be replaced. And more importantly, I lost a place where for the first time in my life I had started to feel safe and stable and could actually start to build a healthy life.

Due to the storm, I have been displaced and while I finished up undergraduate college I had been temporarily staying with a kind friend in downtown Asheville but now I need to find stable housing again. On December 20th, I graduated from Warren Wilson College with a major in psychology and a minor in Expressive Arts Therapy and now I’m in this transitional phase of looking for a job in the psychology field, prepping to co-facilitate the Expressive Arts through Movement course with Dr. Christey Carwile at WWC again, trying to tend to relationships and community, find long-term housing, and planning for grad school (to become a holistic psychologist focusing on trauma healing through somatics/embodiment and natural medicine) all while navigating my own health concerns and disaster circumstances.

See a video & more pictures here

My Social Psyc paper & pics about this experience

About Me

Education

It would take a book to share my life’s journey and how long it took for me to even comprehend the idea that I am worthy of college and good things and what I am capable of doing, let alone all the different challenges I have faced. I have often taken the unconventional path in life and it took some time to realize that psychology or working to be in the helping field actually picked me at a super young age. I have a deep desire to better care for my family and community and show up to help create healthier environments for all beings and have a big dream of co-creating a holistic wellness sanctuary. And I have always wanted to live a simple, more sustainable life filled with art, nourishing experiences and relationships, have a peace of mind and live in a world where we each have a soul purpose and come together to tend to the earth and each other as good relatives. Right before the disaster I was already feeling the approach of a fork in the road or a turning of a new chapter, and the flooding just brought on a stripping/ purging of sorts, right down to the basics and helped to discern what’s actually important.

Our Needs

My intention for 2025 is to find stability, new growth and gentleness. I’m hyper focused on education, housing and family and becoming independent at this time. Money will be spent on housing and/or land, paying off student debt, personal necessities and for getting into grad school. I realize that not everyone can give financially, so if you would like to help in another way, please reach out to me. Otherwise, here are some specifics about our needs:

Housing

Education & Career

Personal necessities

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this and consider supporting me and my family! <3