When Hurricane Helene swept through the Swannanoa Valley, it wasn’t just houses and roads that were torn apart. Entire networks of safety—already strained by rising rents and limited resources—were pushed to the breaking point. What emerged in response was a group of neighbors determined not to let their community fall through the cracks. That effort became Swannanoa Communities Together (SCT).
Beth Trigg, one of the founding members, saw firsthand how urgent the housing crisis had become. “There’s such an extreme shortage of housing here,” she said. “There was before the storm, and there sure as heck is now.” Her sister, Mary Etheridge-Trigg, echoed the urgency, noting that many families displaced by the storm want to remain in the Valley but are running out of options.
SCT’s work now stretches far beyond emergency response. At their community hub on U.S. 70, people can find food, shelter support, and case managers who walk with them through the labyrinth of FEMA paperwork, utility shut-offs, and housing searches. Refrigerators and cupboards are kept stocked. Spanish-language resources are made available. Above all, people are met with care.
As Trigg explained, “We’re trying to respond to the highest needs in the community as we’re hearing them.” That means listening directly to neighbors and adjusting in real time. Some days it looks like providing rent assistance to prevent an eviction; other days it’s finding transportation so someone can make a job interview or medical appointment.
The scope of need is overwhelming, but so is the determination. “It’s a total housing meltdown,” Trigg admitted, but added that every dollar raised flows immediately into the community—keeping families sheltered, lights on, and pantries filled.
Etheridge-Trigg sees the work as ongoing, not temporary. “The needs are not going to stop,” she said. “People are helping each other and helping themselves as much as they possibly can.”
What began as mutual aid in the days after Helene has become an ongoing commitment: to stabilize housing, expand food access, and keep neighbors from being pushed out of the place they call home. SCT is writing a future for Swannanoa rooted in dignity, care, and the simple conviction that no one should face disaster—or recovery—alone.
