EDITOR’S NOTE: Tharran Gaines serves as the Public Information Coordinator for Missouri Disaster Relief. Watch a video related to this article at https://modr.org/video (“Helene NC Rebuild” video).
At the time John and Lisa Grinstead moved to Burnsville, North Carolina, from Florida in 2010, part of their goal was to escape the frequent hurricanes that hit the coast. Little did they know that another hurricane would hit the mountains, where they thought they would be safe, and take everything they owned. Overnight, Hurricane Helene turned the picturesque mountains that attracted the Grinsteads to the area into a wall of water, debris and mud.
Fact is, they narrowly escaped with their lives as they watched their house slide off its foundation next to the Cane River and disappear in the flood. It also took the house next door that the Grinsteads had built for John’s parents. Unfortunately, John’s mother had passed away in 2023, leaving his 92-year-old father alone.
“My wife and I were barely able to get him up the hill to safety,” John related, noting that the water was over the road behind their house at its highest point. “We literally had to do a fireman’s carry to save him and, even then, he thought we were overreacting.”
To make matters worse, John says about the only help they have received has been from volunteer organizations, including a group that donated the use of a 17-foot travel trailer. Another organization built a 12X12-foot storage shed and a yet another volunteer from Georgia arranged for them to move into a larger fifth-wheel trailer that a relative owned but was no longer using. Once their house is finished, they plan to pay it forward by giving the trailer to another family in need.
“The first few weeks were the worst,” Lisa added. “We were living in a donated tent and, of course, nobody had any electricity … even if you did have food left in a refrigerator. There was no access to money, but it didn’t make much difference at the time because you couldn’t get to town, and very few businesses were open. So, people joined together, brought what they had, and we had community meals. Other times, people dropped off food for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It was amazing how people came together to help each other.”
With any luck, though, the Grinsteads will soon be living in a new house being built on the old foundation with the help of Missouri Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers.
“We started working on the house on August 18th and our goal is to have the family in the house by Christmas,” said Mike Hibbard, who, with the help of his wife, Brenda, is serving as liaison for the project. “Another volunteer organization had already rebuilt the basement, laid the floor joists and put down a subfloor, So, we took over from there,” he added, jokingly referring to the existing state as a ‘giant dance floor’.
The Hibbards are no strangers to Burnsville, either. They already spent five months in the area this past spring leading MODR teams and helping to refurbish damaged homes, while living in their own travel trailer—spending only six weeks at different times traveling back to Missouri. Now, they’ve returned for the total rebuild.
“It will be a partial earth contact home, similar to what they had before, but with a different design,” Hibbard explained. “In other words, it will be around 1,100 square feet in size with two bedrooms and two bathrooms and a walk-out basement.
“One of the biggest challenges was putting up the 14 ½-foot front wall, which had already been assembled by a volunteer group from Ohio,” he said.
“Before they left, they were trying to help us put it up and we couldn’t lift it. So, we ended up cutting it into sections,” he added, noting that all the walls are now up.
“John and Lisa have both been helping with the project and we have a couple teams from Missouri that have committed to come and help,” Hibbard said. “In the meantime, we’re required to have a local contractor oversee the project, obtain the appropriate permits and to sign off on everything.”
“Once we get it finished, the Grinsteads plan on having John’s dad move into the second bedroom in their house,” Brenda Hibbard explained, adding that he is currently living in an assisted living facility, rather than the trailer. “So, our goal is to not only get them back into a home, but back together as a family.”
To hear more of John and Lisa’s story and view some of the area damage, go to https://modr.org/video “Helene NC Rebuild”. You can also help financially by going to https://modr.org/give (select Hurricane Helene), or you can make a check out to MODR and mail to MODR, 400 East High Street, Jefferson City, MO 65101, mark it for Hurricane Helene rebuild.
Finally, the opportunity to help rebuild the Grinsteads’ home isn’t limited to disaster relief teams only. Qualified teams or individuals from any Missouri Baptist Church are invited to assist MODR in reaching its goal. To participate contact Mike Hibbard: 660-815-3459, Brenda Hibbard: 573-220-0935 or email: rebuild@mobaptist.org.
