This fall has seen two powerful hurricanes hit the United States and affect communities 300 miles inland in the mountains, as well as much of the state of Florida.
Fred Rogers was told as a child, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’”
Now is our chance to be the helpers, JordanCon fam. Obviously not all of us can physically go to Asheville, NC, or other affected areas and help that way; but we can provide $5, $50, or $500 toward relief efforts.
Hurricane Helene
On September 27, 2024, Hurricane Helene made landfall and proceeded to devastate and destroy a wide swath across the southeastern United States. Western North Carolina and South Carolina were particularly hard hit, though the damage went as far east as Savannah, Georgia, and down to the southernmost tip of Florida. The situation is truly catastrophic, as we in safer places have watched the waters rise to 1000-year heights and whole villages and towns washed away or decimated.
Helene Relief Efforts
One way to help is to prepurchase Charlotte-based Falstaff Books’s Appalachian Strong, an anthology with a line up of amazing authors including Jonathan Maberry, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Matt Denniman, and Nicole Given Kurtz, all of whom will contribute a story to the anthology. The book is $50 in Falstaff’s shop, and delivery will be in December 2024.
I had the opportunity to speak with John Hartness, Publisher at Falstaff. He was inspired to create this fundraising anthology because his niece, a business owner in Asheville, NC, and her family were rescued from the roof of their home by kayak. “That kind of devastation hits hard,” said Hartness, “as did the horror of spending hours not knowing if they were safe, or alive.” This anthology, he continued, “was my best way of helping my family and their neighbors recover.”
Hartness’s current plan is to divide the proceeds between his niece’s family and a pair of Asheville bookstores, Malaprops and Sassafras on Sutton. “Bookstores seem like the logical place to give money raised from an anthology,” he said. “If I hear from those businesses that there are areas of greater need, I will pivot my efforts there. I plan to take guidance from people on the ground, who actually know where the money will do the most good.”
The weekend Helene hit, Hartness was at a conference in Washington, D.C. “I sat down Saturday morning in my hotel room and thought of the biggest names that I had email addresses for, and I sent them an ask. I got responses to my phone before I’d even made it down the elevator to my booth.”
Hartness concluded, “We all want to help people in times of tragedy, so I gave people a chance to lend a hand and stave off the feelings of helplessness a lot of us were experiencing…I couldn’t be more thankful for my friends in this time of need.”
Horror podcast Old Gods of Appalachia’s Facebook page is a great source for local ways to support. Some of the cast members, including Steve Shell (Narrator) and DJ Rogers (Tobias Underwood and Young Doc Underwood), are offering up Cameo recordings, providing personalized messages for birthdays, anniversaries, or, in poet Rogers’s case, reading your favorite poem. All Cameo proceeds will be donated to relief funds.
Hurricane Milton
Just two weeks after Hurricane Helene, a second unprecedented hurricane, Milton, made landfall in Florida. Though the predicted 9-12 feet storm surge didn’t directly hit Tampa, dozens of tornadoes spun off the hurricane proper and wreaked havoc in their paths. Millions of people were—and still are—without power across the state.
General Relief Efforts
Outside of the literary community at JordanCon, we have a strong maker and artist community. The Craft Emergency Relief Fund (CERF) has a grant for $3000 to craft artists who have experienced a recent and disruptive emergency or disaster. You can see if you qualify and can apply for the grant here if you’ve been impacted by Helene, or you can donate to help provide these grants to craft artists here.
Charity Navigator has a list of organizations helping with Helene efforts, as well as those assisting with Milton aid. If you have any favorite relief efforts, please leave a comment below to share.
Now, in all cases, fam, please do your research and ensure you’re donating to a trusted source. Charity Watch is a great place to vet organizations you’re considering donating to. The ones listed above are a few I know and trust, but you may have other qualifications when it comes to donating.