Help Tara, Hudson and Kids Rebuild After Hurricane

Dear family and friends of our amazing sister and brother in law, Tara and Hudson, and our sweet nephew and nieces, Jahkai, Khaya and Kairi.

As most of you know Tara and family have been living in Asheville, North Carolina this year. They were living with VERY minimal belongings in a small apartment until they could find a house to buy. A lifetime of personal possessions and home furnishings were sitting in storage units.

They finally found the perfect home to begin this new journey and the closing date was only days away. They even got a puppy last week to go along with their new lives in their new home.

But a few days after getting their dog and right before closing on the house, came the completely devastating hurricane Helene.

We are all SO incredibly lucky that they are ok. We all know that not everyone is. Hudson aided in rescuing a man in a sinking car in a river, which was actually a former road. We have all seen the footage. We know what could have happened and are so incredibly grateful for their safety. We are also praying for those who weren’t as fortunate.

As our family struggles living without running water for what will be weeks, refusing to come stay with us because they want to be there to help their community, they are coming to terms with the fact that they lost almost everything they owned in those storage units. The building was flooded and deemed unsafe to enter. And although Tara keeps saying they are only things, it is still heartbreaking, and financially devastating.

Everything they owned and dreamed of setting up in their new home. Gone. An entire house worth of furniture. So many tools. Tool chests. Firepits. Artwork. All of Hudson’s stained glass work and supplies. Bikes. Grills. Patio furniture. Every seasonal decoration you can think of. Regular home decorations. Drums. Guitars. Amps. Their piano. All of their nice blankets. Bedsheets. Picture frames and mixtiles pictures of the kids. Photo albums. Pots and pans, wedding dishes and regular dishes. Blenders and juicers. Clothing and shoes for all 5 of them. All their family memorabilia. Everything the kids ever made in school and at home. So. Many. Books. All of Jahkai’s series books, Tara’s teaching books, travel books and healing books and the kids favorites they’ve gathered over the years. Our Dad’s things that she kept after he died. Cards the kids made or received from loved ones or wrote for each other. Winning baseballs signed for Jahkai. Trophies. Medals. Kids toys and special items. Legos and dolls and baby blankets. All their games and home family tapes and video recordings. So many more things they can’t even remember or wrap their heads around.

I know nothing we can do will replace the priceless items described above, but if you could help them as they pick up the pieces to furnish a new life, you would forever be appreciated. Thank you so much for reading. Much love.

Tara’s sisters,

Jeanette and Serena