EdNC. Essential education news. Important stories. Your voice.

Search ednc.org

Do you know a WNC homeowner whose home was damaged by Hurricane Helene?

Share this story

Our republishing policy

EdNC is a nonprofit, online, daily, independent newspaper. All of EdNC’s content is open source and free to republish. Please use the following guidelines when republishing our content.
  • Our content must be republished in full. If your organization uses a paywall, the content must be provided in full for free.
  • Credit our team by including both the author name and EdNC.org in the byline. Example: Alex Granados, EdNC.org.
  • If republishing the story online, please provide a link to EdNC.org or a link to the original article in either the byline or credit line.
  • The original headline of the article must be used. Allowable edits to the content of the piece include changes to meet your publication’s style guide and references to dates (i.e. this week changed to last week). Other edits must be approved by emailing Hannah Vinueza McClellan at [email protected].
  • Photos and other multimedia elements (audio, video, etc.) may not be republished without prior permission. Please email Hannah Vinueza McClellan at [email protected] if you are interested in sharing a multimedia element.
  • If you republish a story, please let us know by emailing Hannah Vinueza McClellan at [email protected].
Please email Hannah Vinueza McClellan at [email protected] if you have any questions. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Canonical tag

Please include the following canonical tag in the <head> of the republished story.

<link rel="canonical" href="https://www.ednc.org/do-you-know-a-wnc-homeowner-whose-home-was-damaged-by-hurricane-helene/">

HTML content

This includes the title, byline, content, and tracking pixel required for republishing this story.

Copy & paste HTML
This story is tagged:
Courtesy of the Office of the NC Governor

We need you to spread the word about Renew NC

After Hurricane Helene, a daughter helped her mom apply for disaster relief through Renew NC, a program with $807 million in federal funding for homeowners in western North Carolina to repair, rebuild, or reconstruct homes. This week, the mom moved back home.

Just like the daughter helped her mom, we need you to spread the word and offer support to homeowners in need. Please share this opportunity with your families and colleagues, with your book clubs and Sunday school classes.

Homeowners should apply or call to see if they are eligible if:

  • They owned the damaged property at the time of Helene on Sept. 27, 2024;
  • They currently own the damaged property;
  • The property was their primary residence at the time of Helene; and
  • The damaged property is in Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Buncombe, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Clay, Cleveland, Gaston, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Lincoln, Macon, Madison, McDowell, Mecklenburg (28214), Mitchell, Polk, Rutherford, Surry, Swain, Transylvania, Watauga, Wilkes, Yadkin, or Yancey county.

Sign up for the EdDaily to start each weekday with the top education news.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Click here to apply. If the application seems challenging, please stick with it, there are 60 real humans answering calls to support homeowners through the process.

You can also apply by calling Renew NC at 1-888-791-0207 or emailing HeleneRecovery@RenewNC.org. Translation services are available.

Homeowners can also apply in person in Boone, Marion, or Asheville, Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Here are the addresses for those offices as well as other places to apply in person throughout the region.

Scott Elliott, formerly a superintendent in Watauga County and now working on recovery in western North Carolina, says, “Housing matters. Getting people’s houses back to being their homes matters. We need everyone in western North Carolina to know about this opportunity.”

A drawing from a first grader following Hurricane Helene. Courtesy of Ryan Mitchell

The first repairs have just been completed

“Rebuilding safe and sustainable housing is crucial to helping western North Carolina get back on its feet,” said Gov. Josh Stein. “Completing our first home is an important milestone in the Hurricane Helene recovery process. Let’s keep swinging hammers and getting more families back home.”

The Renew NC Single-Family Housing Program aims to address the long-term recovery needs of homeowners in western North Carolina. More than 1,900 applications have been received by the program, according to the governor’s office.

You can view a public dashboard tracking the progress of the applications at the RenewNC.org website.

Matalene Waters, shown center, with her daughter, April (left), and goddaughter, Tangela (right). Courtesy of Office of the NC Governor

This week, Matalene Waters, 74, smiled as crews finished repairs to her once storm-damaged home, according to this press release.

“My mom is my hero. To get her back into her home, that was the plan,” said her daughter, April Stewart.

“It feels real good to be back home and not have to worry about being somewhere else,” said Waters, the first applicant approved under the program.

“If you have a home that hasn’t been completed, please reach out to Renew NC,” she urged other homeowners.

Please share this post on social media:

Are you a western NC homeowner whose home was damaged by Hurricane Helene? You may be eligible for help with the costs…

Posted by Renew NC on Wednesday, August 27, 2025