Hurricane Helene Recovery
Help families rebuild stronger after Hurricane Helene
It’s been two years since Hurricane Helene devastated communities across the Southeast, and CORE is still on the ground. Right away, so many of you answered our call to support vulnerable families who had lost everything. Thanks to your generosity, we raised $500,000, and together, we rebuilt an entire community of homes in Swannanoa, North Carolina by March 2025. It’s a powerful example of what’s possible when we come together—but the work didn’t end there.
What began in North Carolina has grown into a powerful, regional recovery effort. Over the past two years, we’ve expanded into Georgia and more communities across the Carolinas and Tennessee, where the need for safe, stable housing was urgent.
Elevating a single mobile home costs an average of $10,000—a transformative investment that protects families from future floods and restores their sense of safety, dignity, and peace of mind. In communities still reeling from Hurricane Helene, your gift does more than fund construction; it keeps families rooted and resilient in the face of future disasters.
Our Impact
Click through the timeline to learn about key milestones in our journey, from emergency response to recovery, after Hurricane Helene made landfall in September 2024.

Hurricane Helene made landfall as a massive Category 4 hurricane — the strongest hurricane to hit Big Bend on record. The storm carved a 500-mile path of destruction from Florida through North Carolina and caused estimated damages well over $100 billion.

With a history of programming in Georgia and North Carolina, CORE quickly set up distribution points in Lowndes County, GA, and Hendersonville, NC. In partnership with local agencies and the National Guard, we reached over 60,000 people and distributed 230,000 essential items, including hygiene kits, tarps, water, and meals.

After raising $500,000 in the storm’s immediate aftermath, CORE hired a local team who launched our long-term recovery initiative in Swannanoa, North Carolina. We focused our rebuilding efforts in Alan Campos, a mobile home community home to many low-income families. Our work included clearing out and gutting flooded homes, mitigating mold and flood water contamination, and installing subfloors, insulation, and drywall. We also elevated many of these homes and HVAC units to reduce the risk of future flooding.

Families in Alan Campos celebrated the rehabilitation of 25 homes in their community, marking a major milestone for CORE’s post-hurricane rebuilding and recovery efforts. Among them was Dulce, a mother of three, who lost everything to the storm. Reflecting on her return, she shared:
“[My home] was all damaged. It was all covered in mold. Compared to now. Well, that’s everything. For me, it’s everything. My emotional stability, the stability of my children. Practically everything.”

CORE established the Home Rebuild Program in North Carolina, which expanded our geography to reach more families in Buncombe and Henderson Counties. By July 2026, we will have restored a total of 80 homes – supporting over 200 low-income, uninsured, or underinsured individuals and seniors in their path for recovery.
CORE won a $700k+ award with American Red Cross to lead long-term recovery efforts in Valdosta County, GA. Together, we began repairing the roofs of over 30 homes damaged by the storm.
CORE launched a pilot Mobile Home Repair and Rebuild Program in Carter County, Eastern Tennessee, aimed at addressing critical housing needs in one of the region’s most underserved rural communities. This pilot coupled storm repairs with insulation upgrades and structural reinforcement.
We're so proud to have stood alongside the amazing and resilient folks in Lowndes County, who had been dealing with residual damage from Hurricane Helene for nearly two years.
60,000
people reached
across Georgia and North Carolina
230,000
resources distributed
including water, hygiene kits, tarps, baby supplies, and ready-to-eat meals
80
homes rebuilt
across Buncombe County, NC
and Lowndes County, GA
Join our movement
Our mission is simple, but powerful: to help families emerge from disaster stronger, safer, and more prepared for what’s next. Across the Carolinas, Georgia, and Tennessee, families continue to face repeated storms like Hurricane Helene, leaving them with limited time and resources to fully recover.
We can’t do this work alone. In the immediate and long-term aftermath of Hurricane Helene, our local, state, and national partners have been instrumental in helping families recover and rebuild. Thank you for standing with families before, during, and long after the storm has passed.
Hear from the resilient residents of Alan Campos about their rebuilding journeys.
“And thank you to CORE who has been there from the start. I’m so thankful for them, because they find ways to help us get back home soon.” – Maria, Alan Campos resident
In the News.