Hurricane Helene Recovery - Adult Mission & Service
May 18 - 24, 2025
The Diocese of East Carolina is partnering with UMCOR (United Methodist Committee on Relief) in the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church to offer service for ongoing Hurricane Helene Recovery in Western North Carolina. Adults from the diocese will be part of UMCOR's longterm recovery work in this area that in anticipated to be ongoing for 3 years.
Important Information:
You must be able to commit to the whole week.
All adult participants are required to meet UMCOR's Safe Sanctuaries standards including completing a background check processed by UMCOR.
All adult participants are required to complete a skills assessment to participate. This DOES NOT MEAN if you do not have construction skills you shouldn't sign up. Rather it is to assess the capabilities of the group when selecting worksites.
Housing will be in Reeves Chapel Center in Asheville and this recently closed as a United Methodist Church that UMCOR has been working to repurpose to house work groups coming into the area. The group will be responsible for planning and cooking/packing their daily meals.
Cost: $450 per participant. This includes lodging and most meals (some meals will be an out of pocket expense). We will be looking for drivers, some gas and transportation costs will be covered.
What to Expect:
Volunteers will help get families back in homes that are safe, sanitary and secure. The people we serve were impacted in different ways, so the work we will do is varied and can change daily. While some homes were flooded, others incurred damage from fallen trees, wind and landslides. Typical work can include drywall, flooring, roofing and debris removal.
UMCOR Site Managers will do their best to match your team with appropriate projects based on your team size and skill level. We are not able to tell you exactly what you will be doing very far in advance. Keep in mind that the projects change daily, depending on a number of factors including what the team before you was able to accomplish and the weather. Remember the first rule of disaster response: be flexible! UMCOR provides all site supervisors.
The Rev'd Michelle Bullock is serving as the group coordinator. Please reach out to her with any further questions about the trip itself. Should have questions regarding your registration please contact Emily Gowdy Canady at Diocesan House.
STOP: Please review the registration form prior to beginning to make sure you
have all the required information to complete.
Registrations must be received by April 30th with a non-refundable deposit of $225. The remaining balance of $225 be due on May 10th and will be charged to the card on file.