A Promise To Keep

BY TINA V. BRYSON

The night of the flood, Brenda and her granddaughter were awakened at 1 a.m. to find water rising toward their home from the creek bed. Soon, the water rushed under Brenda’s home, demolishing everything in its path, including her home’s electricity and water sources. After water was restored, debris in the lines destroyed her hot water heater, as well as her washer and dryer.

Through strategic partnerships and committed volunteers, Christian Appalachian Project (CAP) is able to help families, like Brenda’s, that have fallen through the cracks since being impacted by the devastation of the July 2022 floods.

Brenda had been a counselor and a case manager at a maximum-security women’s prison for more than 20 years. She had a double major in college in social work and criminology so she could help people in the community struggling with the impacts of substance abuse. “I was no different than those prisoners except I chose a different path,” she said. “It made me realize how much I took for granted. It completely changed me.”

Wiping tears from her eyes, Brenda continued: “Asking you all for help was hard for me. Because I sent people to you all, but now I’m on the other side of the fence. It’s hard to ask for help when you have helped so many people in your own life.”

Through the generous support of donors nationwide, CAP and Knott County Long-Term Recovery partnered to fulfill a commitment to help 100 families like Brenda’s, who were still on their waiting list, get back into homes that were safe, warm, and dry. Brenda’s home marked the 100th of that disaster response goal and with volunteers from Iowa’s Amish community providing the labor, her home’s repairs were completed in just three days. CAP is working with Knott County to assist with an additional 10 homes that still need repairs.

Scott Dale, a CAP Home Repair crew leader, oversaw the replacement of the floor joists, subfloor, and the water heater. In addition, volunteers built a wheelchair accessible ramp to help Brenda, who suffered debilitating injuries following a near-fatal car accident. They also patched her roof, replaced the floorboards on the back porch, and repaired the back steps, which had crumbled under floodwaters.

“It felt good to be able to help,” Dale said. “It’s simple things that we take for granted, like being able to wash your hands or your face in the bathroom sink or flipping the switch and you have lights. It makes you more grateful.”

Dale, whose grandparents helped raise him, felt a special connection to Brenda, who had promised her son, who passed away from cancer, that she’d take care of her granddaughter.

“I told myself when I lost my son that there is nothing in this house that cannot be bought back, but I can’t bring him back. So, it has changed how I look at things,” Brenda said. “My daddy built this house and watching them repair it has been hard for me because they are taking up the last thing I have that’s his. I can buy another house, but I can’t buy back Daddy’s house. But I am very grateful for the help.”