About Us

It all started when Hurricane Helene hit Western North Carolina on September 27th, 2024. Helen caused catastrophic destruction - floods, landslides, tornados, loss of homes, businesses, and most importantly, lives. None of us ever expected our mountain communities to be destroyed by a hurricane. Our towns are 2,000 feet or more above sea level. We are about a 6-hour drive from the nearest coast. What we do have is creeks and rivers - our roads follow the rivers, power lines follow the roads, and our towns and homes are often built alongside those creeks and rivers or tucked into "hollers" between mountains. Some areas here received 20-30 inches of rain. This rain poured down our mountains into the hollers and into the creeks and rivers. Rivers rose 20' or more above their normal levels. The gentle rivers that are usually a leisurely tube or canoe ride became turbulent rapids that washed houses off their foundations, washed roads and bridges off the sides of the mountains, and buried homes, vehicles, and PEOPLE in the water, mud, and debris that was pulled into the water. The extra rainfall saturated our land and created hundreds of mudslides that caused additional destruction during and after the storm. Most areas lost power, internet, cell service, and water and sewer services. It took over a month for those services to be restored to many areas. It will be many months before homes can be rebuilt (if ever). Most people who live in the mountains don't have flood insurance and regular homeowners insurance isn't covering damages. Schools were closed and some schools became shelters for the people who lost their homes. Yancey County Schools finally opened with limited hours November 18th. Many bus routes have been changed and community bus stops created due to the still extensive damage to roads and bridges in the area.

Our call to action

Our Story

Out of this disaster, our community came together!

Krysten and TJ Crabtree are Yancey County residents who live in a home near the former Bald Creek Elementary School. Their home was relatively unharmed and their power and water services were restored quickly. The Crabtree family started offering their home for shower and toilet use for residents of local shelters who had lost their homes in the storm. They knew that the school building had been purchased from the school board by a new owner shortly after it was closed and that it was currently still empty. They had a vision of it being the perfect storage space for supplies to help out the people of Western North Carolina who had lost everything. The new owner of the school building agreed to let them use the building as a supply center. Krysten contacted Lori Denley, who she knew through their daughters' friendship at school and had gotten to know personally through a school field trip. Lori and her husband Travis Denley live just a few miles down the road from the school. Their home was also undamaged by the storm and they had been delivering supplies to their neighbors and fundraising on their own during the first few days. Several other friends and neighbors of the Crabtree family joined the team and started to spread the word. Donations of supplies and volunteers looking to help arrived quickly, and the team filed for 501c3 non-profit status under the name Bald Creek Relief in honor of the Bald Creek Elementary School building's legacy in our community. A lease was secured on the school building and everyone worked together to create a distribution hub where individuals and families can come "shop" and also put together "orders" to take out to the remote locations where people were stuck without roads and bridges.

Several of the volunteers who joined in the early days and weeks became our most valuable team members. Katie Houser started as our "Kamping World" Manager and spearheaded our propane campaign once the cold weather hit. She is now the Executive Director of Bald Creek Relief and helping us transition into the Southern Appalachia Community Center. Savvy Scala joined the team as our volunteer coordinator and transitioned into outreach and is now our Community Gardens Manager. Savvy is excited to help our community with food security through healthy organic gardens. Dana Allen started as our clothing manager and is now our Volunteer Coordinator. Our team is so much more than just volunteers - our hearts are connected through our mission.

Bald Creek is ever evolving to fill the changing needs of our community and beyond and plans to continue relief and recovery for years to come.

Meet The Team

Krysten Crabtree (right):

BCR Founder and former President

Lori Denley (left):

BCR Founder and current President

828-222-3502

loridenley@baldcreekrelief.org

Travis Denley:

BCR Founder & Vice President

John Chaffin:

BCR Founder & Secretary

Maria Yumagulova:

BCR Founder & Treasurer

Katie Houser

Executive Director

828-222-3801

khouser@baldcreekrelief.com

Dana Allen:

Volunteer Coordinator

TJ Crabtree:

BCR Founder

Additional Volunteers

We have been so incredibly blessed to have volunteers who have traveled from near and far - even from other devastated areas of Western NC or from as far away as South Florida and Ohio! Some have only had a few hours to give while others stay for days at a time or come every weekend. Every single volunteer is appreciated!