Episcopal churches and organizations across the Carolinas, Georgia, Florida, and Tennessee have reported serious damage while continuing to assess wreckage in the wake of Hurricane Helene.
The Cathedral of All Souls in Asheville, North Carolina, reported devastating flooding. Video footage posted September 29 by the cathedral showed flood water engulfing the church’s outdoor sign, and photos taken after the water had receded showed a visible watermark several feet high on All Souls’ chapel building.
North Carolina’s Buncombe County, of which Asheville is the county seat, was among the hardest-hit communities, accounting for at least 40 deaths, as of September 30.
“This is the worst flooding that we have seen and it’s the worst flooding that this structure will have seen,” the Very Rev. Sarah Hurlbert, dean of the cathedral, told local media.
The historic church was consecrated in 1896, and its pulpit, lectern, high altar, cathedra, pews, and kneeling cushions are all original.
“We will rebuild and our faith is shown now in loving our neighbors,” the cathedral said on its Facebook page.
A GoFundMe campaign organized by All Souls to help the cathedral community and its neighbors had raised $15,791 of its $50,000 goal as of the morning of October 3.
Thirty miles south of the cathedral, Helene wreaked havoc on Kanuga, an Episcopal conference, retreat, and camp center that hosts more than 35,000 guests annually.
“This tropical storm has been the most devastating weather event to impact Kanuga since the great flood of 1916,” said president and CEO Michael Sullivan in an update to supporters Monday evening. “Power is out and roads in and out of Kanuga are closed. Kanuga Lake Road is unstable. Kanuga sustained substantial damage from high winds, flooding, and downed trees.”
Two of the camp’s 39 cottages and its lakefront pavilion sustained significant damage. Trees fell on several other buildings, and the wind caused damage to some roofs. Kanuga occupies 1,400 acres of the Blue Ridge Mountains near Hendersonville, with a 30-acre lake at its center. The center will remain closed for at least two weeks as leaders assess the damage and plan to make repairs, Sullivan said.
“While the damage is great, it is not catastrophic. We will recover,” Sullivan added.
The office of the Episcopal Diocese of Western North Carolina, meanwhile, remains without power after the storm, according to its Facebook page.
The Diocese of Georgia also described damage across the diocese during the weekend, including many downed trees at its retreat center, Honey Creek, and tree damage at St. Andrew’s in Douglas.
“It’s been a rough few days,” Honey Creek said in a Facebook post. “Thursday night was scary, Friday was disorienting with hot daytime temps and no power or phone service, and Saturday has worn folks down.”
St. Bartholomew’s in Savannah, a historically significant African American church with roots dating back to the 1830s, sustained damage when a pecan tree hit a power pole and crushed into the sanctuary roof. A parochial mission of St. Paul the Apostle in Savannah, the church holds services two Sundays a month with a handful of active members.
“Hurricane Helene impacted every corner of the Diocese of Georgia and we have a lot of clean up ahead of us in many areas,” the diocese said.
Helene, which made landfall in Florida on September 26 and swept across the southeast region, left many parishioners unable to worship in their buildings Sunday morning. Bishop Frank Logue of Georgia and his wife, Victoria, hosted online Morning Prayer from the Episcopal Center in Savannah for those who couldn’t meet safely in person. The service featured songs created for worship during the COVID pandemic.
Meanwhile, Camp Mikell, the Diocese of Atlanta’s 460-acre camp and conference center located in far northeast Georgia, offers refuge for those affected by the storm. On September 30, the camp offered its facilities to anyone looking for a place to stay while waiting for utilities to be restored.
“We have power, hot water, and our stores and gas stations are stocked,” the camp said on its Facebook page.
In Florida, Church of the Redeemer, Sarasota, reported during the weekend that the parish’s exterior was inaccessible, under four feet of water. The inside, however, was “miraculously dry.”
“Please pray for waters to recede and comfort for all in harm’s way,” Redeemer’s rector, the Rev. Charleston Wilson, said. “It is in the trying times that we often become aware of God’s presence and protection. No matter the size of the storm, his eternal promises are infinitely bigger. And rest assured, as soon as this weather passes, this parish community will be hard at work helping to soothe the suffering!”
The Episcopal Relief & Development has a Hurricane Relief Fund to provide critical supplies, such as food and water, pastoral care, and other urgent needs, and to support long-term efforts needed to rebuild in the wake of Helene.
