Picking up the Pieces

Words cannot begin to describe the devastation Helene brought. Whole homes wiped out, roads eaten by rivers, huge sections of old trees turned into mud and matchsticks by landslides. Yet a mile away, only a few branches down.

Many parts of WNC have resumed “business as normal.” Others are facing years before roads will return. The boil advisory just lifted for Asheville Water customers, yet in other areas, access is still severely limited. Chimney Rock Village is closed, yet Black Mountain has basically reopened (some shops are still being repaired, but most of the town is open). Many are still figuring out what they do after their businesses or homes were simply… erased. Others have found temporary places to sell wares or live until they can come up with a plan.

People have asked us what our plan is, and frankly, we don’t know. Most of our pastures were wiped out or buried under debris, and with them our fencing and shelters. We had just completed four pastures with the new fencing and were working on another, and now most of that material is gone and can’t be replaced. We sadly lost three horses to the hurricane, two to running into the floods and one to an injury that got infected, and that pain is indescribable. But we were lucky to have been onsite to open gates and get the horses out of the floods before the worst of it hit. I will be starting to post stories of our flood experiences, but right now, it’s just too raw. For all the horrible things that have happened, there have been amazing people pulling together to help us and others in the community, and for that we are extremely grateful.

Our plans will continue to take shape in time. Right now, our focus is on replacing the bridge and cleaning the pastures so we can reseed where the grass was wiped out. Because of the damage to the grass, we most likely will have to relocate temporarily while the pastures heal.

We’re still waiting to see how much government support will cover repairs, but so far, it appears that there will be a significant amount that is not covered. So, part of the plan to raise funds to start making repairs is to sell what is left of our HDPE fencing materials. We’re still figuring out how much is left, but please feel free to contact us if you are interested. We are also more actively listing some of our young horses, namely a 3yo Lusitano stud colt, a 4yo Lipizzan gelding, and Liam our Kerry Bog Pony gelding. While videos may be slow to get at this point, we will work on getting them as fast as possible.

We will be posting more of a needs list as things become clearer and the area more accessible. Right now, access is a challenge, as is communication. There are a lot of moving parts that we’re working to get working in cohesion, so until we have more of that organized, the best help is financial, whether that’s donations or buying some of the fencing or one of the horses. We will probably list some other items, such as a couple simple carriages (horse sized Jeff Day sport phaeton and pony sized Bob Cook marathon carriage).

However, despite all that has happened, we’re still planning to continue working to fulfill our mission. While onsite lessons and other programs are on hold for the time being while we figure out the exact next steps, virtual lessons over video chat platforms are still available. I’ve been working on developing eBooks, and hopefully, those can be launched fairly soon. We didn’t pick our name idly; we may not have thought we’d be living it this way, but hey, we’ll take it.

If you’re looking to help the general area, there are several organizations that are working around the clock to help folks out: The Special Forces Foundation, the Cajun Navy 2016, RISE Disaster Relief and Recovery, Animal Search And Rescue (ASAR), 4Hooves Large Animal Services, and more that I’ll add as I get their details. Many churches are working in the area from as far as Maine as well. If you’re uncertain about which organizations are legitimate, you can donate to United Way, who has been giving grants to nonprofits helping people in the area. Supplies are still needed in the area, especially cold weather supplies. Cleanup is still ongoing, so there is a huge need for private individuals with large equipment to clean up trees, debris, and silt that has been deposited all over the area. The work is just beginning; it’s taken this long for access to many places to be re-established, so in many places, cleanup is just now possible.

For all who’ve helped us so far, THANK YOU. It is so very appreciated. Stay tuned for updates!