The family of a Marine veteran made a miraculous discovery of a Bible stuck on a fence post in an area of North Carolina absolutely devastated by Hurricane Helene. The Bible was opened to the book of Revelation — a divine sign, according to the family.
Hurricane Helene ravaged Western North Carolina with catastrophic rainfall in late September. One of the areas that was devastated by Hurricane Helene was the town of Old Fort, roughly 25 miles east of Asheville, North Carolina.
'So if that’s not a message, somebody needs to wake up.'
Marine veteran Scotty Swann had his home flooded by the high waters. The water was so high that Swann was forced to retreat to the roof of his house and had to be rescued by a raft.
Once the floodwaters receded, Swann's family began working to restore the flooded property and discovered a Bible pinned to a fence post. In an eye-opening coincidence, the Bible was opened to the book of Revelation. The Bible has become a symbol of faith and hope for the community.
A TikTok post with the caption "God is everywhere," shows a close-up photo of the Bible that miraculously survived Hurricane Helene.
The family of Swann saw the Bible as a powerful reminder of resilience and encapsulated it in a protective case.
Another TikTok video shows the wondrous Bible being encased.
According to Fox Weather, the brother of Swann shared a video of the Bible.
"This Bible was stuck on this fence post, open to Revelations," the unnamed brother said. "Of all the things destroyed, that was left open, and it’s sitting there, and we’re not touching it."
"So if that’s not a message, somebody needs to wake up," he noted.
The brother revealed that a man from South Carolina constructed and donated a cross made out of cedar to stand next to the miraculous Bible.
The woodworker, Joey Brown, put a plaque on the cross that read: "Donated to victims of Hurricane Helene."
Brown told Swann that he donated the cross to "spread the word of God and tell people that they're not alone in this hurricane and in this challenge."
Swann's brother said, "So this is just amazing on how people have responded."
Hurricane Helene unleashed approximately 30 inches of rain — or nearly four months’ worth of rain — in just three days on Western North Carolina in late September.
According to data from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, there are 103 verified storm-related fatalities in North Carolina due to Hurricane Helene as of Nov. 21.
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When a wounded Army Ranger received a well-deserved thank you for his service last week, there wasn't a dry eye in the house — literally.
Emotional footage shows the moment retired U.S. Army Sergeant Joshua Hargis and his family first step into their brand new, mortgage-free home in Nolensville, Tennessee — a gift from the Gary Sinise Foundation.
'There is not another man like him that I would trust my life with.'
"This is insane," says one of two young sons Hargis shares with wife Taylor before breaking down in tears.
Hargis, who served as K-9 handler with the 75th Ranger Regiment, describes seeing the house for the first time as "absolutely overwhelming."
During Hargis' fourth deployment in Afghanistan, his team was ambushed while conducting routine operations. Four members of his unit were killed along with his K-9 companion, Jany. Hargis lost both his legs while running into danger to assist a fellow Ranger in a minefield.
“During a night raid, we were drawn into an area that was littered with buried IED's (improvised explosive devices), and our targets had donned explosive vests that were concealed under their clothing,” Hargis explains.
Hargis had learned that his wife was pregnant with their first child just a week before. After his life-changing injuries, his joy at becoming a father turned to apprehension.
“I was so intent on getting back to my wife and unborn child, but I was afraid of facing my wife in broken form," Hargis said.
That apprehension vanished the moment they were reunited.
"My fears and insecurities were washed away when she raced to be by my side as the ambulance doors opened. There was never a moment that she wasn’t by my side fighting for me when I couldn’t.”
Hargis' friend, U.S. Army Ranger Spencer Cox, says he wasn't surprised by his fellow Ranger's courage.
"That’s the kind of person Joshua is. He is the most selfless individual I have ever had the privilege of working with.
"His tireless work ethic, spirit, soul, and love for his family are truly remarkable," Cox continued. "There is not another man like him that I would trust my life with. I know that Joshua can manage and succeed in any environment, no matter what is thrown at him."
The family's new, custom-built residence will provide a more accessible environment for the Purple Heart recipient than their previous split-level home.
Hargis says the added independence the house affords him will make him a better husband and father.
"For our family it means so much more, it’s mental, it’s emotional, it’s freedom to be able to interact as a family a little bit better. All of the small details in that house that are going to make not only my day to day easier, but my wife’s day to day easier raising two boys, it’s a huge blessing."
The Gary Sinise Foundation teamed up with a number of partners to construct the home, among them Sunbelt Rentals, Owens Corning, Kaishan Compressor USA, and LP Building Solutions for Professionals.
“We want them to know we never forget,” says actor and musician Sinise, who started the foundation in 2011 to help veterans, first responders, and their families. “I’m a grateful American and I want them to know it, and I want to be somebody who can rally support from around the country.”
You can watch the touching video of the Hargis family seeing their new home for the first time here.
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American military veterans continue to seek accountability and answers regarding the Biden-Harris administration's disastrous and deadly withdrawal from Afghanistan.
While some veterans may have previously suspected the Democratic administration was doing its best to ignore their concerns, John Kirby, the White House National Security Council communications adviser, appears to have accidentally confirmed on Wednesday that that's the case.
Kirby reportedly sent a message intended for White House staffers to a Fox News Digital reporter, stating there was "no use in responding" to veterans' concerns about the Afghan withdrawal and its portrayal by the White House.
The House Foreign Affairs Committee released a report Monday titled "Willful Blindness: An Assessment of the Biden-Harris Administration's Withdrawal from Afghanistan and the Chaos that Followed."
Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-Texas) said in a statement:
Our investigation reveals the Biden-Harris administration had the information and opportunity to take necessary steps to plan for the inevitable collapse of the Afghan government, so we could safely evacuate U.S. personnel, American citizens, green card holders, and our brave Afghan allies. At each step of the way, however, the administration picked optics over security.
According to McCaul, the report makes clear that the Biden-Harris administration's botch job "placed U.S. servicemembers and U.S. State Department personnel in mortal danger" and led to the American and Afghan deaths and injuries at Abbey Gate.
During Monday's White House press briefing, Kirby responded to the report, saying it "comes, of course, two years after their first report, and this one says little or nothing new."
'Absolutely despicable.'
Kirby further characterized the report as "one-sided," then defended the Biden-Harris administration's actions, going so far as to suggest "there was no handover of U.S. equipment to the Taliban."
Kirby also alleged "there was no deception, lying, or lack of transparency by this administration either during or after the withdrawal."
The White House's apparent unwillingness to accept responsibility or to at the very least take the report seriously enraged Florida Republican Rep. Cory Mills and other veterans.
Mills, for instance, emphasized on X, "It’s time the Biden-Harris administration takes responsibility for abandoning thousands of Americans and allies, for handing over billions in U.S. military weapons and cash to the Taliban, for leaving women and children to suffer under Taliban rule, and for the 13 brave heroes who sacrificed two lives, the one they were living and the life they could have lived."
Fox News Digital indicated that it contacted the White House, referencing several veterans' critiques of Kirby's remarks — including the suggestions that he was merely providing "cover" for or "deflecting" from the administration's ruinous withdrawal.
The email chain was reportedly forwarded to White House staffers on the National Security Council. Then, thinking he was only responding to White House staffers on the chain, Kirby replied, "Obviously no use in responding. A 'handful' of vets indeed and all of one stripe."
Having later realized what he had done, Kirby wrote back to the reporter, stating, "Clearly, I didn't realize you were on the chain."
"This is how the Biden-Harris administration talks about the well-founded concerns of our nation’s veterans?" Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) asked on X. "Just days after the anniversary of the deadly Afghanistan withdrawal. On the anniversary of 9/11. Our Gold Star families deserve better."
Senior Trump adviser Jason Miller wrote, "Shame!"
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) stressed, "Nobody at the White House should ever speak this way about our veterans seeking accountability for the Gold Star families the Biden-Harris Administration created with their reckless decisions. Absolutely despicable."
Texas Rep. Ronny Jackson (R) suggested Kirby "is a DISGRACE!!" and should immediately resign.
California Rep. Darrell Issa (R) wrote, "This White House has nothing but contempt for veterans who call them out."
Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman McCaul said in a statement obtained by the New York Post that Kirby's comments were "appalling, but sadly not surprising."
"The Biden-Harris administration has consistently disregarded our veterans, servicemembers, and Gold Star families over their botched withdrawal from Afghanistan," added McCaul.
The Post indicated that the White House had not responded to its request for comment.
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Hegseth's outsider status makes him a threat to the bureaucratic rot infecting the highest levels of the Pentagon.
Biden, Harris, and Kirby, not Trump, are the ones who repeatedly show contempt for men and women who have risked their lives for the country.
Kamala Harris' policy platform regarding America's veterans is as vague, disingenuous, and dishonest as you'd expect.
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