When Hurricane Helene rushed ashore in late September 2024, it was the strongest hurricane on record to strike the Big Bend region of Florida and the deadliest Atlantic hurricane since Hurricane Maria in 2017, and the deadliest to strike mainland US since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

After rescue workers cleared areas, MNA Disaster Response began mobilizing first responder teams, first in Tallahassee FL and surrounding communities, then working our way into Georgia. Teams established major operations in Valdosta, Vidalia, and Augusta, all communities served by the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). As landfall first became imminent, staff at The MNA Charles H. Jones Family Disaster Response Center in Rome GA and the MNA John Browne Family Disaster Response Center in Dallas TX began loading and transporting equipment toward where our teams would first place boots on the ground.

As the storm continued north, outer bands slammed coastal areas of Georgia, where it created lots of issues in the Augusta area. First PCA Augusta Georgia, a church with a highly skilled disaster response ministry sprung into action and communicated to us that they were willing to establish a volunteer hosting site for traveling teams to complement their own teams efforts.

However, the ‘Depot’ a building on their campus designated as a place where MNA Disaster Response could house traveling teams, was without power. MNA Disaster Response was prepared for that eventuality and rolled one of our 75KVA mobile generators there and teamed up with a member of the congregation who is a master electrician; he made the connection by simply knocking a hole in the wall and installing a new 200 amp service. Simple, right?

Initially, the “Depot’ was to be used for volunteer sleeping, but for at least a few days, before power was restored to the campus, some church workers also shared the space.

At the same time, MNA Disaster Response began loading and transporting trailer-loads of relief kits, already on-hand at the warehouse in Rome GA, to member congregations of Highlands Presbytery in western North Carolina. These kits included flood buckets, hygiene kits, and bedding replacement kits. To know more about the kits go here: https://www.mnawarehouse.com/downloads

Relief kits were also transported to Memorial Presbyterian Church of Elizabethton TN and Christ Community PCA of Johnson City TN, congregations united in love and mission to Highlands Presbytery of the PCA, and Westminster Presbytery of the PCA, respectively.

Traveling teams from Memorial have setup SOH in New Bern NC, Seneca SC, and assisted in training other teams in SOH kit production. Several years ago, the church invested in a SOH SmartBench, a jig that when used during kit production ensures accuracy of the shed.

Memorial, has been part of Sheds of HOPE for about 6 years. But this was different. Formally the church built Sheds of HOPE kits that were transported to other places. When Hurricane Helene’s floodwaters destroyed Memorial’s own community in the Appalachia Highlands the church had four SOH ready to deploy. All four were quickly transported to flooded homeowner properties and set up.

Subsequently, Memorial Presbyterian Church of Elizabethton TN invited several other PCA congregations to join with them and form a coalition to provide SOH in the tempest-tossed areas of Johnson, Carter, Washington, Unicoi, and Greene counties of TN. The other congregations include Westminster PCA of Johnson City TN, Christ Community PCA of Johnson City TN, Walnut Hill PCA of Bristol TN. This super exciting. Each congregation has committed leadership and construction volunteers to first evaluate candidate families, and then take part on setup days.

MNA Disaster Response immediately began transporting SOH to the staging area where Memorial’s team normally constructs SOH kits, a former grocery store (the grocery store) owned by a local physician who understands the importance of providing secure dry storage for storm victims. Typically when a major disaster occurs in a community where homes are destroyed or suffer major damage, the first thing that happens is that all of the available mini-storage units get rented on the first day. Therefore, most folks do not have a safe, weatherproof, secure place to store recovered belonging. The grocery store, now a SOH factory, has a nice size parking area where SOH kits can be staged. Memorial invested in a forklift years ago, so they were already prepared to be the best operations-base for this initiative.

MNA Disaster Response has committed to provide 30+ SOH to the coalition for this response, but will reevaluate as necessary, as informed by the coalition of congregations.

In addition, MNA Disaster Response had loaned the coalition the above ‘one-at-a-time’ transport trailer to make it easier to delivery a victim’s property.

If you would like to be part of this initiative, please reach out to Steve Britton @ sbritton@pcanet.org.

If you would like to help fund this initiative go here:

To Give Online: Click Here

To Give By Mail:

1. Make checks payable to Mission to North America
2. Note on the memo line  Acct. Sheds of Hope #1730
3. Mail your check to:

Mission to North America
P.O. Box 890233
Charlotte, NC 28289-0233