Recap: DAY TWO, Part 5 - Dinner & Debriefing

 THURSDAY 10/17/2024 - Part 5

We met the Mountain Rescue NC team at about 7:30am in Lawndale, NC. By 10pm we were at the Buffalo Wild Wings in Morganton, NC with 6 new friends and, by midnight, we had said goodbye to these people who now felt like members of our family. 

Spending a day driving through an area that has been completely devastated by a natural disaster, and meeting people who have survived such a storm, changes you. The MRNC team told us that morning that we should be prepared for what we'd see and what we'd encounter and that we'd likely not be the same people by the end of the day. They were right. When you experience something like that, you form a bond with the people you are with. You're all sharing the same experience and you're all feeling something that no one else, who wasn't there, will be able to understand. 

We spent a couple hours, over a very late dinner, reminiscing about our day; discussing possible strategies for future missions, and reflecting on our favorite parts of the day. Yes, we were there because of a tragedy. So many people lost everything. Many of them lost family members, in addition to their homes and all of their possessions. We still had "favorite parts" of the day though. It was amazing to see the resilience of these people. It was wonderful to see smiles on children's faces as they picked out a squishmallow, were given a children's book, and got to play with a new wiffle ball and bat. The day was about helping those who had suffered tremendous loss but it helped all of us, too.

In only about 16 hours we went from strangers to family and we hated to have to say goodbye. 

We're incredibly grateful to everyone who donated and helped to make our trip to North Carolina possible. The friends, family members, and strangers who connected all the dots we needed to connect to make it happen. You all restored some of our faith in humanity with your willingness to donate your time, supplies, and money so selflessly for complete strangers, over 600 miles away. And to entrust us to deliver those supplies. We have seen Mountain Rescue NC up close and personal and witnessed how their organization works. It's not easy to organize a non-profit, especially when it's created to help with a natural disaster. Everything they do needs to be done ASAP, they don't have time to wait on anything. Please continue to support our new family in North Carolina and all of those who need us in WNC. They need us and we can assure you that Mountain Rescue NC will get your donations exactly where they need to go.

Donate to Mountain Rescue NC

We had a little surprise a few weeks after arriving home from our trip. Stay tuned for more on that!