FEMA and NC National Guard abandon North Carolinians living in TENTS as winter looms



Hurricane Helene had devastating effects on Western North Carolina. Many residents are still displaced. Some of them are even living in tents right now.

Why then has FEMA and the North Carolina National Guard ceased operations in areas most impacted by Helene?

Mercury One executive director JP Decker joins Jill Savage on “Blaze News Tonight” to share what the nonprofit is doing to fill the gap in the government’s absence.

“The devastation is still there. Nothing has really changed in regards to some of those buildings in Asheville or Black Mountain,” says Decker, adding that there’s still “20- to 30-feet tall piles of debris.”

By the looks of the North Carolina National Guard’s social media pages, however, it would seem that they’re working tirelessly to help the victims.

But when Decker was on the grounds with Mercury One, “There was no FEMA, there was no National Guard.”

In addition to other nonprofits, he says, “It was the everyday person who was standing in the gap and doing what the government should have been doing.”

Making matters worse is the fact that the city of Asheville, North Carolina, recently installed a single-unit public bathroom that cost a pretty $400,000.

“This shows how important local government elections are when you have people who are willing to do something like this when there's people that are suffering and living in tents,” says Decker.

Blaze News editor in chief Matthew Peterson points to a recent article written by Blaze News investigative journalists Steve Baker and Joseph Hanneman, in which they report the same story.

“The Army, Air Force, and National Guard have pulled most personnel from Western North Carolina. The temporary shelter need is 'extremely urgent' as winter looms,” they wrote.

Baker, who spent time in North Carolina helping with relief efforts, has a difficult time speaking about the tragic abandonment of the North Carolinians.

“We made relationships with these [government employees] and became very friendly with them. We were seeing each other every day; we were going out to the disaster relief site ... going out with their dog teams, going out with their people, helping recover bodies and also help removing debris and clearing people's property,” he says. “And then to see these forces removed ... I get very emotional about this.”

“Last week ... I drove over a 100 miles through the most devastated areas in the western part of the state and mile after mile after mile, tent after tent after tent, where people won't leave their property because they're afraid they're going to lose it if they leave,” he recounts. “And not one military vehicle, not one troop on the ground.”

Shocked at what he was seeing, Baker said he called the public affairs offices to inquire about the egregious abandonment.

He was met with responses, such as, “You’re right, Mr. Baker. We withdrew.”

But when Baker asked the obvious follow up question — Why? — he was met with silence.

“There is no answer because there is no logical answer,” he tells the panel.

To hear more of the story, watch the clip above.

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‘This is gaslighting, this is propaganda’: How Hurricane Helene victims have been ABANDONED by the government



While the news cycle has shifted its focus to the president-elect and other timely issues, the people of North Carolina are still suffering in silence after Hurricane Helene ravaged the place they call home — with government assistance almost nowhere to be found.

Blaze News investigative journalist Steve Baker was on the ground in North Carolina following the deadly storm — and what he saw is something he can’t soon forget.

“You see the devastation, and you see houses up in trees, 30 feet above the current water level, that are still there, and it all of a sudden dawned on me, multi-hour, winding, 150-mile journey to Tennessee through the back roads, is I didn’t see a single military transport at all, of any kind,” Baker tells Sara Gonzales of “Sara Gonzales Unfiltered.”

“Not one troop on the ground of any kind, either active duty or National Guard,” he adds, noting that as soon as he got back to Dallas, Texas, he began asking some serious questions.


“The first thing that I discovered was that in fact, the National Guard had been withdrawn on the 19th of this month,” Baker explains, adding, “So, as I’m starting to dig through this, I go to the X account of the North Carolina National Guard.”

According to Baker, the pinned post on the Guard's X account said, “This is a no fail mission. We are there for you until it’s over.”

“No, they’re not,” Baker comments. “So we’re working on this story for the last several days, and then just yesterday, all of the sudden, whoever their social media person is is populating the X page with all these new posts showing photos of all the work that they’re currently doing, except that some of those photos have green leaves on the trees still in the background.”

“This is gaslighting, this is propaganda, and so we’re asking the questions,” he adds.

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No more military help for storm-ravaged North Carolina amid reports of people living in tents



The National Guard and the U.S. Army XVIII Airborne Corps have pulled all service members out of storm-ravaged Western North Carolina at a time when advocates for Hurricane Helene victims say some residents are living in tents while hundreds await word on temporary housing.

Joint Task Force North Carolina — a blend of National Guard and active-duty Army and Air Force troops — had 4,000 members working in North Carolina as of Oct. 29, but two sources told Blaze News there are no service members working on storm relief in the region. The National Guard pulled out within the past week.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is finalizing work on a water treatment system near Asheville. The Corps of Engineers is working to remove storm debris to a site near Asheville. An effort to document the high-water marks in North Carolina will continue for “a few more weeks,” the Corps reported Nov. 22.

'Your job is not done. There are people still sleeping in tents and in desperate need of help.'

Major Aimee Valles, a public affairs officer with the XVIII Airborne Corps, told Blaze News that all Airborne Corps personnel were removed “a little more than a month ago.” Army and Air Force units from XVIII Airborne Corps had 1,500 personnel assigned to Western North Carolina in October.

Blaze News contacted the North Carolina National Guard for more details on the pullout but was referred to the North Carolina Department of Public Safety, which did not reply to a request for information. North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper’s office also did not return a message from Blaze News seeking comment.

The commander of Joint Task Force North Carolina, Brig. Gen. Wes Morrison, penned a thank-you letter to the troops Nov. 21 that was posted to X on Nov. 25.

“This Joint Task Force rescued over 865 people, delivered over 22,000 tons of relief supplies, cleared over 1,600 obstacles while repairing an untold number of roadways, bridges, and culverts,” Morrison wrote. “Over 6,200 National Guardsmen from North Carolina and 15 other states, along with active-duty soldiers, have served in 17 affected counties.”

The withdrawal comes amid complaints that some residents who had been put up in hotels by the Federal Emergency Management Agency are now living in tents because their hotel vouchers expired.

“That’s not the only reason so many are choosing to live in tents,” a National Guard official told Blaze News. “They are afraid to abandon their properties [for fear] their land is going to be taken from them. True or not, that is what they’re afraid of.”

Woody Faircloth, founder of the Colorado-based charity EmergencyRV, has provided 35 free recreational vehicles to Western North Carolina residents since Helene struck in late September. The need will spiral as the weather turns colder, he said. Another 10-11 RVs will be delivered Thanksgiving week.

“It’s going to get worse before it gets better,” Faircloth told Blaze News Nov. 25 as he drove a donated RV through Tennessee toward Western North Carolina. “There’s a cold front coming in. That is going to be a problem for everybody there. Even ones in RVs. We’re going to have to make sure they get some insulation underneath them.

FEMA direct temporary housing units are set up for occupancy on a commercial lot in Old Fort, N.C., on Nov. 16.FEMA Photo by Greg Curtis

“People are staying in hotels that got denied by FEMA, and they’re going to run out of money,” Faircloth said. “When you live in a hotel, you’re going out to eat every night because you can’t make a meal. These RVs kind of solve that, but we won’t be able to help everybody up there. We wish we could. The need is increasing, not decreasing.”

According to AccuWeather, overnight temperatures in Swannanoa will drop to 26 degrees on Nov. 29 and to 18 degrees on Dec. 1.

One family EmergencyRV helped was originally provided with a donated tiny home, but Faircloth said FEMA “red-tagged” it as uninhabitable because it didn’t meet FEMA requirements.

“They gave the family a hotel voucher for three days, and the family doesn’t have anywhere to go after three days,” Faircloth said. “So they were planning to come back and pitch a tent there, but we diverted an RV that’s going to them and they’ll have that when they go back in.

'God and Santa Claus are going to be so proud of us.'

“I mean, this is how it works,” he said. “It’s like people helping people. Nobody else is going to help.”

Faircloth said EmergencyRV still has 300 requests for housing assistance. There are some 1,900 FEMA hotel vouchers that will expire “at some point” and greatly increase the need, he said.

Faircloth will be in Western North Carolina all week. He made the trip in a donated RV with his daughter Luna, who was one of the inspirations for establishing the charity. EmergencyRV began delivering homes to those displaced by the massive wildfires that struck Paradise, California, in November 2018.

Faircloth saw a fire survivor on television expressing thanks for having a place to stay for Thanksgiving, pointing to a nearby RV.

“I looked over at my daughter, who was 6 at the time, and I said, ‘Hey, why don’t we get one of those and we’ll drive it to California and we’ll give it to a family so they have a place to call home for Thanksgiving?’ She just got the biggest smile on her face. She said, ‘Dad — God and Santa Claus are going to be so proud of us.’”

— (@)

Faircloth said EmergencyRV needs new or used RVs in good working condition. The charity will transport them from anywhere in the country. The group also needs financial support for things like new tires, fuel, and furnishings for the homes.

Nearly a month ago, a former assistant secretary of the U.S. Army told Blaze News the Hurricane Helene response coming from the Biden-Harris White House was “pathetic” and tainted by partisan politics. Casey Wardynski, assistant secretary of the Army for manpower and Reserve affairs under former President Donald J. Trump, said the Pentagon offered much higher levels of support for wildfires and other hurricanes.

The National Guard source — who has extensive experience working on the ground in Western North Carolina but is not authorized to speak for the Guard — said the Western North Carolina counties did not want Guard help for anything but food and water distribution.

“We were glorified spigot turners,” the source said. “The counties made a decision to use those limited funds to hire locals who have been displaced from their jobs. So they sent us home. We were never deployed in the manner we should have been. Our actual capabilities were never employed.”

The source said federal and local officials need to suspend regulations in this emergency so that no one is left out in the cold. He confirmed reports that dozens of tiny homes built by Amish carpenters and other volunteers won't be used due to building codes or other regulations.

'They are no longer here. I’m in complete disbelief.'

“These counties must issue a moratorium on those regulations. These people need immediate dry and warm housing. We can worry about codes and regulations later.”

Local residents who took to social media expressed feelings of abandonment and questioned the Joint Task Force’s frequently posted social media statement, “This mission is no fail, and we’ll continue to work around the clock until it’s complete.”

Some vented anger at Gen. Morrison on X.

Glenna Ryan posted, “Wow. What a disgrace Americans still suffering in tents, cars.” An account under the handle Deplorable Nicholas added: “What exactly are you celebrating? Your job is not done. There are people still sleeping in tents and in desperate need of help. Shame on you and the governor for even considering this.”

Matt Van Swol, an Asheville photographer who has shared the plight of locals on X throughout the fall, said hundreds of people are waiting for temporary shelter across the region, but only a handful of trailer homes have been delivered by FEMA.

— (@)

“We talked to someone yesterday who said FEMA told them it would take ‘3 months’ to get their home,” Van Swol posted on X Nov. 22. “This incompetence is causing real-world harm to people.”

On Nov. 15 and 16, FEMA published photos showing manufactured homes and camper/trailers sitting unused in a staging area in Hickory, N.C. The agency was setting up a small community of the temporary homes for occupancy in Old Fort, N.C.

Blaze News reached out to FEMA for comment but did not get a reply by press time.

Van Swol was critical of the North Carolina National Guard for posting weeks-old photos on X because it creates the impression that Guardsmen are still at work helping people.

“The NC National Guard is literally posting pure propaganda videos on X, pretending they are still in WNC helping us,” Van Swol posted Nov. 25. “They are no longer here. I’m in complete disbelief.”

Van Swol posted drone video he and his wife took that shows tents being used for shelter in Swannanoa.

A 5th wheel RV from EmergencyRV is delivered to a displaced resident of Fletcher, N.C., in October. EmergencyRV provides free RVs to people who have lost their homes to natural disasters. Close to a dozen RVs will be delivered to Western North Carolina Thanksgiving week.Photo courtesy of Woody Faircloth. Used with permission.

Van Swol’s wife, Erin Derham, a documentary filmmaker, said they tried in vain to get mainstream media outlets to cover the ongoing tragedy from Helene damage. Fox News sent a crew last week, but otherwise coverage has been threadbare, she said.

“The community effort on the ground is stronger than any movie I’ve ever seen,” Derham told Blaze News. “People set aside political beliefs and any prejudices they had in the past and just helped each other. The same cannot be said for the response coming from the outside, particularly from government organizations and the media.”

Derham called and emailed media contacts she had through her filmmaking business, but no one wanted to cover the story, she said.

“Media outlets of all political affiliations have been reached out to by myself,” Derham said. “Some of which I had direct contacts with, including CNN. I got nothing. Zero response. Zero. ‘We can’t help with this right now but hope you’re OK.’

“Nothing. That is insane to me,” she said. “We have been harassed online for going on conservative news outlets, but those are the only outlets covering this story.”

The couple also posted recent video showing the massive amount work to be done to clean up unprecedented storm debris.

“Shockingly little progress has been made in the clean up efforts across the rural mountain areas of WNC,” Van Swol posted on X. “It’s hard to overstate the sheer volume of debris that exists in every town, everywhere across Appalachia. At the current pace it’ll take decades, not years.”

Readers on X were critical of a flurry of National Guard posts published since Nov. 21 that showcased work that was done weeks ago.

A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers contractor removes debris from Lake Lure, N.C., on Nov. 15, 2024.U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Photo by Patrick Moes

“Why are you showing old photos when you have pulled out?” one reader commented. Another wrote: “Do you still have any troops deployed? It’s being widely reported that all troops have RTB [returned to base] and that these pics are weeks old? You aren’t trying to gaslight light us now are you?”

One National Guard post on X from Nov. 24 showed cleanup efforts under way in Marshall, N.C. The photos in the post were taken Oct. 28, according to the Defense Visual Information Distribution Service, which manages photos and videos for the military and federal agencies.

“Shame on you. Delete this post,” wrote reader Jill Shank. “Remember what you saw? Those people are suffering a bitter winter abandoned by their government.”

Another Nov. 24 National Guard post on X showed soldiers assisting in warehouse operations in Waynesville, N.C. The photos were taken Oct. 27 by Staff Sgt. David Hunt of the 382nd Public Affairs Detachment, according to DVIDS.

Faircloth said of the more than 100 families he has spoken to in the region since Hurricane Helene, none had flood insurance. They lost everything in the storm. He said this makes the donated RVs even more important.

“This is why we only deliver nice RVs. Some of these families will live in these things for the rest of their life,” he said. “That's just the cold, hard facts about it.

“But it’s incredible work,” Faircloth said of his charity. “God is definitely driving the RVs, if you know what I’m saying.”

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Get Ready for a Bathroom Revolution in 2024!

Get Ready for a Bathroom Revolution in 2024!

New FEMA whistleblower backs allegations of political discrimination against Trump supporters: Rep. Comer



House Oversight Committee Chairman Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) announced on Tuesday that another whistleblower has come forward to accuse the Federal Emergency Management Agency of political discrimination.

The new development followed a House Transportation and Infrastructure hearing where Congress members grilled FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell about a now-terminated hurricane relief supervisor who admitted to ordering workers to avoid homes with signs supporting President-elect Donald Trump.

In the wake of Hurricanes Helene and Milton, then-supervisor Marn'i Washington gave the directive to her team while administering aid in Lake Placid, Florida. She claimed the instruction was in accordance with FEMA's "avoidance" and "de-escalation" tactics to avoid "politically hostile" homes.

"This is not isolated," Washington stated, adding that the avoidance doctrine was also deployed outside Florida.

During Tuesday's congressional hearing, Criswell rejected Washington's claims, insisting that the incident was isolated to the single rogue employee. She noted that an ongoing internal investigation had not found any evidence of a culture of political discrimination.

"I do not believe that this employee's actions are indicative of any widespread cultural problems at FEMA. FEMA, however, has taken appropriate action to ensure that this matter is fully investigated, and I am committed to ensuring that nothing like this ever happens again," Criswell told the committee.

"We are working with the inspector general to determine whether or not this is broader than this, but the evidence that I have seen so far shows that this was an isolated incident, and it has not gone beyond what this one employee did," she stated.

However, after the hearing, Comer revealed that a second whistleblower had stepped forward with similar accusations.

Comer shared the development in a post on X, writing, "My staff just made contact with a new whistleblower who provided a credible account that a FEMA contractor visited the home of an elderly disabled veteran's family around October 10."

"While there, he recommended that the family remove Trump campaign materials and signs from their house and yard, stating that his FEMA supervisors view Trump supporters as domestic terrorists," Comer continued. "The elderly homeowners were so frightened by this and afraid that they would not recover their loss that they removed the signs. Nevertheless, FEMA has not returned to their residence."

He noted that the alleged incident took place in Georgia, not Florida.

FEMA did not respond to a request for comment from the New York Post.

— (@)

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FEMA Director Says Criticism Of Agency Is Misinformation

FEMA was heavily criticized for its disaster relief efforts being slow and political, while spending money on illegals. Those criticisms turned out to be accurate.

‘Sounds Like Peter Strzok’: Jordan Grills FEMA Director Over Text Message Telling Workers To Avoid Trump Supporters

'reinforces that mindset'

Congress grills FEMA following alleged discrimination against Trump supporters



Congress grilled Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Deanne Criswell on Tuesday afternoon regarding allegations of political discrimination and the agency's request for $40 billion in disaster relief funds.

During a House Transportation and Infrastructure hearing, Criswell was questioned about a now-terminated hurricane relief supervisor, Marn'i Washington, who admitted to instructing workers to avoid homes with signs supporting President-elect Donald Trump during the relief efforts following Hurricanes Helene and Milton.

'This is pretty hard to defend.'

FEMA has repeatedly insisted that the situation was isolated, but Washington has argued that she is being used as a "scapegoat," claiming that the instruction to skip certain homes was not an isolated incident.

During Tuesday's hearing, Criswell told Congress, "I do not believe that this employee's actions are indicative of any widespread cultural problems at FEMA. FEMA, however, has taken appropriate action to ensure that this matter is fully investigated, and I am committed to ensuring that nothing like this ever happens again."

According to Criswell, the agency's "ongoing investigation," which includes questioning personnel in the chain of command above Washington, has yielded "no information at this point that there was anything beyond her [Washington's] direction to her employees to skip and bypass a home."

Criswell agreed to request an outside investigation from FEMA's Office of Inspector General.

FEMA is requesting that Congress provide $40 billion for disaster relief to last through the upcoming year. Amid the impacts of Hurricanes Helene and Milton, the agency has highlighted its depleted resources for emergency responses.

Several Republican Congress members pressed Criswell about the agency's request for additional funding while its Shelter and Services Program continues to provide extensive free services to illegal aliens.

In response, the FEMA administrator redirected the criticism back at Congress, pointing out that the legislative body had created the program and mandated the agency oversee it.

Rep. Marcus Molinaro (R-N.Y.) challenged Criswell's defense, calling it the "easiest and most disingenuous argument."

"You administer the one department in domestic policy that has to triage and to set priorities — your department," Molinaro stated. "You are empowered and your department is empowered to decide what of the programs you're running today should take precedence or priority over the others. Yes, sure. We can pass a law that limits the Shelter and Services funding, that stops dollars getting to illegal immigrants, but you have to make that decision every day."

Rep. Mike Ezell (R-Miss.) questioned Criswell about 20 Hurricane Katrina infrastructure projects funded and never completed by FEMA.

"How, 20 years later, are there still unresolved projects from Katrina?" Ezell asked. "This is pretty hard to defend."

Ezell called FEMA's failure to complete the projects "simply outrageous."

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FEMA ignoring Trump supporters in Florida is exactly why we need Matt Gaetz



Last week, Blaze News covered a story about a FEMA supervisor named Marn’i Washington who was fired due to a released report accusing her of ordering relief agents under her authority to avoid homes with Trump signs in Lake Placid, Florida.

According to Washington, however, she was merely the scapegoat for FEMA’s broader discriminatory policies.

“FEMA preaches avoidance first, and then de-escalation. This is not isolated. This is a colossal event of avoidance. Not just in the state of Florida. You will find avoidance in the Carolinas,” Washington said on a podcast, during which she explained that FEMA at large tends to avoid homes with Trump signs for fear of aggression.

Jill Savage and Blaze News editor in chief Matthew Peterson invite Rachel Bovard, vice president of Conservative Partnership Institute, on the show to discuss the situation.


“Is this problem bigger than just one employee at FEMA?” Jill asks.

“This is the way the government has been operating for the last four years,” says Bovard. FEMA has “taken direction from the president of the United States, who stood in front of Independence Hall two years ago and said, ‘Anyone who supports Donald Trump is an extremist.”’

“All of the ideologues in the bureaucracy were activated to essentially make that statement by the president their government policy,” she explains. “When you think about the mission that FEMA is supposed to represent, they are supposed to be there to help Americans at the worst point in their lives, and here we have that agency ... putting partisan politics ahead of it all.”

Matthew Peterson calls the event one of many examples of “how bad things have become.”

However, now that Trump will return to the White House bolstered by his bold Cabinet picks, the future looks hopeful.

“I’d love to know your thoughts on the picks so far,” he tells Bovard.

“I think institutional Washington is losing their minds, but I actually think [Matt Gaetz] is the perfect answer to Merrick Garland,” who “turned the Department of Justice into an arm of the president’s political terror,” says Bovard.

“[Garland] put Steve Bannon and Peter Navarro — two people who served in Trump's administration — in jail; he aggressively pursued peaceful pro-life protesters; he ignored the disorder in the streets and used taxpayer-funded resources to harass and prosecute and terrorize peaceful J6 protesters to the ends of the Earth. ... Those actions need to be answered with a sledgehammer, and I really do kind of feel like Matt Gaetz is maybe the perfect person to do that.”

Before Gaetz can get to work as Trump’s attorney general, however, he first has to be confirmed by the Senate that just elected John Thune as its new majority leader.

“What does the pick of John Thune tell you about where the Senate does want to go?” asks Jill.

Bovard is a bit concerned when it comes to Thune.

“John Thune, I should point out, voted to confirm Merrick Garland,” as did other Republican senators, including Mitch McConnell, John Cornyn, Thom Tillis, and Susan Collins — “all of the people you now see pearl-clutching about Matt Gaetz,” Bovard explains.

She hopes they will confirm Gaetz in order to “atone for their sins of confirming Merrick Garland.”

To hear more of the conversation, watch the clip above.

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Blaze News original: Christians to provide happy Thanksgiving to hurricane victims in Western North Carolina



As devastating as the images were coming out of Western North Carolina in the wake of Hurricane Helene in late September, sadly, it is all too easy for those of us personally unaffected by the storm to move on with our lives. Emotions were high leading up to the election, and now supporters of President-elect Donald Trump have focused much of their attention on the prospects of his second term.

Not so for those in North Carolina. Though voter turnout was still remarkably high in North Carolina, exceeding turnout in 2020 by more than 100,000 votes and exceeding 2016 numbers by more than 1 million, much of the western part of the state, normally protected from the storms that batter the coast with some regularity, remains wiped out from flooding.

Not content to carry on with the holiday season while their compatriots across the state still suffer, some Christians in an eastern region of North Carolina have made preparations to provide supplies, Bibles, and a hearty Thanksgiving meal to those in need.

To learn more about what has been dubbed Operation Thanksgiving Blessings, Blaze News spoke with the man behind the plans, David Burke, who in turn prefers to give all the credit to someone else.

"No way in the world would all this stuff ever have happened if it wasn't for God," he said, adding with a laugh, "I'm not that smart."

Operation Thanksgiving Blessings

Blaze News spoke with Burke on multiple occasions and can verify that he is, indeed, that smart. By trade a project manager for a metal fabrication company, Burke has also been known to dabble in some cooking competitions.

"I was ranked as high as #3 in the state of North Carolina for whole-hog BBQ competition with the Roth Carolina Pork Council," he noted proudly in a message to Blaze News.

After attending church one Sunday morning in early October, just a week or so after Hurricane Helene ravaged his state, Burke sensed that he had to do more for the victims than pray or write a check.

"The Sunday school lesson was on home community service, of all things," he said. "I'm 59 years old. Never once have I had a Sunday school lesson on community service until about three weeks ago, four weeks ago."

David Burke, speaking to children at a church that donated 100 Bibles for Operation Thanksgiving Blessings. Photo used with permission.

After a series of coincidences, putting Burke in touch with people living hours away, he finally figured out what he was going to do: arrange to cook a Thanksgiving dinner for those living in an area that has thus far received little help from the government.

Citing Newland, North Carolina, Mayor Derek Roberts, who claimed his daughter received just $300 from FEMA after losing her entire house to the flooding, Burke claimed that government assistance has been almost nonexistent in some cases and that the people of Western North Carolina have more or less had to fend for themselves.

"I knew right then that's where we needed to go," Burke told Blaze News.

Burke lives near Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina, a rural area about 100 miles northeast of Raleigh and more than 260 miles east — about a six-hour drive — from Elk Park, the area he intended to feed. The distance and the scope of his plans meant that Burke needed help.

As so many people do these days, Burke turned to social media, creating a Facebook page as a landing site for those interested in getting involved. And, as it were, the floodgates opened.

Famed turkey company Butterball donated 100 turkeys weighing about 24 pounds each. Glover Construction is providing enough ingredients to make 300 gallons of Brunswick stew, a local staple that Burke described as "a thick vegetable soup." Even an area prison with a farm on its grounds reportedly offered 180 dozen eggs — more than 2,100 total — for the effort.

Restaurants such as Napoli Pizza and Italian Restaurant in Murfreesboro chipped in by holding fundraisers. By pooling all proceeds from the fundraiser — including tips — Napoli's alone collected $4,000 for Operation Thanksgiving Blessings.

Napoli's owner, Mari Rizo, told Blaze News she was thrilled with the success of the fundraiser.

"At Napoli's Pizza and Italian Restaurant, we’ve always believed in the power of community. When we heard about the devastating impact of the hurricane on families in Western North Carolina, we felt compelled to help. Our team wanted to do something meaningful to give back, especially with Thanksgiving approaching," Rizo said in a statement to Blaze News.

"To the families in Western North Carolina who are facing difficult times, we want you to know that we are thinking of you. We hope that this gesture helps to bring some comfort and joy to your holiday. Our hearts are with you, and we will continue to do everything we can to support you through this difficult time."

Photo of Napoli's fundraiser. Used with permission.

The Seaboard Lions Club, of which Burke is a member, has also collected monetary and supply donations and stored them on the organization's 20-acre site.

"Everybody knows somebody, and in our world, the more people you know ... [the] better off you are," Burke said of the growing network of donors and volunteers involved with Operation Thanksgiving Blessings.

Burke told Blaze News that his initial goal was to cook and serve about 5,000 total meals on Thanksgiving Day, but that goal expanded after he spoke with a woman who had a similar idea about feeding others living near Fletcher, North Carolina — about 90 miles away from Elk Park — on the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

"We got another 40 turkeys donated and another 20 hams, and so what we're gonna do is we're gonna cook all that food for those 500 as well on Thanksgiving Day, and we'll pack it in bulk and send it to her. And then all she'll have to do is warm it back up and serve 500 people on Saturday as well," Burke explained.

As generous as a home-cooked Thanksgiving meal is, the food represents just a tiny fraction of the goods and services Operation Thanksgiving Blessings will offer those in Western North Carolina.

Burke and his team have loaded 53-foot trailers with other supplies as well, including clothes for the winter, heaters, blankets, baby supplies, gloves, hats, personal hygiene items, paper products, and cleaning supplies. ORBIS Corporation even donated 750 plastic bins for storage, a necessity for folks who lost not only all their possessions but a place in which to keep them.

"ORBIS is honored to support this incredible cause and support the people of Western North Carolina in their time of need," the company told Blaze News.

Photo of supplies. Used with permission.

The details

The crew from the Roanoke Rapids area has already begun packing up trailers and trucks, ready to haul everything out to the western part of the state just a day or so before Thanksgiving.

On Thanksgiving Day, they will set up shop at Cranberry Middle School at 6051 N. U.S. Hwy 19E in Elk Park, North Carolina. Folks can begin arriving at 11 a.m. and sit down and enjoy their meal or pick one up and take it to go.

Screenshot of flyer featured on OTB Facebook page. Used with permission.

Burke told Blaze News that his group has all the supplies and donations it can handle. He suggested that anyone still interested in making a monetary donation mail a check to the Seaboard Lions Club at P.O. Box 76, Seaboard, North Carolina, 27876. Sending it to David Burke's attention and including "OTB" on the memo line of the check will help earmark it for Operation Thanksgiving Blessings.

Burke emphasized to Blaze News that "every red penny" the Lions Club receives will be distributed to people living in and around Elk Park. Ever committed to transparency, Burke even offered to have Blaze News share his private phone number in this article, an offer that we politely declined.

"I don't want people to sit around and wonder what we're doing," he explained. "I want them to see exactly what's going on and see God at work."

Feeding bellies and souls

Burke, a devout Christian, takes the biblical call to love and serve others seriously, and he is happy to use his talents as a project manager and as a chef to give those who have lost all their material possessions a Thanksgiving meal they will never forget.

However, he believes that evangelizing them for Christ is even more important.

"We're looking for that one person out there that doesn't believe, doesn't think God is real," he told Blaze News, "and it is our hope that we can change his mind or her mind."

"By showing them that people care and that God has been working this whole time to make all this come together, maybe, just maybe, we'll save that one," he continued.

Burke is hardly the only Christian involved in Operation Thanksgiving Blessings. In fact, he has teamed up with members of churches across the state to identify and reach people in need.

For instance, Burke connected with a pastor from his hometown of Murfreesboro but now living in Boone, North Carolina, who began collecting supplies sent via Amazon from all over the country. Burke also made contact with the student body president of Appalachian State University, who once attended Sunday school taught by Burke and his wife.

"I called and talked to her, and I told her ... 'Go out there, and you tell these people that you're gonna come bring some help to them at Thanksgiving. ... And I'll be standing right behind you,'" he recalled to Blaze News. "I said, 'You've been on mission trips with me before. You know exactly what I want to get done. So let's see if we can make it happen.'"

Burke acknowledged to Blaze News that some people, especially those who lost their homes, pets, and even loved ones in Hurricane Helene might struggle to believe in a loving, all-powerful God. But he added that faith in the face of doubt is still the answer.

"Why did God let this happen? I can't answer that question, but it's all within His plan," he explained. "His plan has meaning. He doesn't make any mistakes, and so all we have to do is we have to have the faith."

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