It has been a year since the devastation of Hurricane Helene ripped through the southeastern US. In response to the flooding and need for resources, Operation Recovery deployed to Johnson County, Tennessee. Partnering with Mountain City First Christian Church and the Long-Term Recovery group, hundreds of volunteers have shared God’s love and hope through rebuilding homes and encouraging conversation.  

The impact has come from many different avenues, people from all over the country doing what they can, coming together as a community. This is very evident in the Daye’s story. Their recovery has come from their own hands as well as support from a variety of communities they have belonged to over the years.  

The Flood 

After finding an affordable caretaker for his elderly father, the Dayes decided it was time to find a place of their own. Newly married, they were excited to start a new chapter of their joint lives. After finding a good landlord who would let them do some extra work to move in early, they started renovating. New carpets, fresh coat of paint, and lots more sweat and love were poured into the new home. 

“We moved in on Monday, put everything in a storage building on Wednesday, and the storm hit on Friday,” shared Mr. Daye. “That day I got up and the water was already a foot below the bridge. By the time I got ready for work there was a cop standing in our front yard hollering at us to get out because our home had been surrounded by water in those 30 minutes while I got ready.” 

The fire department was also out helping people reach safety, and the Dayes watched the water rise alongside them from nearby high ground. They soon went to Mr. Daye’s workplace, where they waited and helped the manager try to keep the water out. When they checked on Mr. Daye’s father, they were grateful he lived on high ground; he was doing well, though his neighbors had suffered extensive damage. At the end of the day, they finally made their way home, carefully navigating back roads obstructed by fallen trees and debris.  

“Our home was still there, but it was a mess, everything in pieces. The flood washed all the topsoil away – it looked like a creek bed more or less. I was able to shovel enough mud away from the door to get inside,” recalled Mr. Daye. There was a layer of mud throughout the house; one inch in some rooms, up to eight inches in others. 

Working together for Recovery 

After spending a night in their car, the Dayes got to work. In the hope of saving the subfloor in the less damaged rooms, they quickly began shoveling out the mud and tearing up the carpets. They worked late into the night, mucking out all but one room that had seven inches of mud. The next day, while they were checking on Mr. Daye’s dad, the landlord came by to check on them and the property. The Dayes came by his home later that afternoon, and he was floored at the amount of work they had already done. 

  “Our landlord said, ‘you all are a godsend’ and I said, ‘I told you from the beginning, you take care of us, and we’ll take care of you,’” recalled Mr. Daye. They all talked for a while about the damage in the area and what to do next. With so many other properties damaged, the landlord agreed that the Daye’s wouldn’t pay rent while they worked on repairing the house themselves.  

With the green light to keep working, they began to assess their needs. The couple kept working on mucking out the house and salvaging what they could. The store owner at Mr. Daye’s work lent them a shop-vac and they rented an industrial carpet cleaner to try to restore their new carpets. Soon they were encountering more people wanting to help: family, friends, coworkers, and complete strangers.  

“My wife is on home dialysis, and I need to monitor her. And I work during the week. So, I do all the work on the weekends,” explained Mr. Daye. Family came up to help on those days. His son-in-law’s work donated the use of some heavy equipment, and they worked all weekend to even out the yard. Their concern reached out to the neighborhood, bringing bottled water to share with everyone.  

Friends donated and exchanged materials between the recovering communities. One in particular wouldn’t take any money in return, instead he requested “a cheeseburger! When you get everything done invite me over and we’ll grill out.” In like fashion, more groups stepped up to lend a hand. Mr. Daye’s motorcycle club collected donations across the country. Samaritan’s Purse saw the family working themselves and paid to replace the tools they lost in the flood. An individual stayed in the area for weeks helping people clear their section of the creek with his personal excavator.  

Volunteers enter the field 

Through an event run by the Long-Term Recovery Group, the Dayes got connected with several volunteer groups seeking to help. One group was Operation Recovery and First Christian Church. Through these organizations, several groups and individuals have worked on the Daye’s home over the past year, but one of their favorites was just a few weeks ago.  

This group from Indiana helped with a variety of projects around the house: tearing down the destroyed shed, replacing insulation and drywall, installing new cabinets, and basically remodeling the kitchen. Mr Daye praised, “They came all this way just to help, and it turned out amazing, my wife is in love with her new kitchen!” 

However, the work wasn’t the main impact, “We just had an amazing time hanging out with them and getting to know each other. They all also loved my dog, so when I took everyone to the hardware store all the women disappeared to get the dog toys!” Those memories will be a lasting impression not only on the Dayes, but the volunteers that served as well.  

Help From All Directions 

The generosity wasn’t contained to just the Johnson County area. One of Mr Daye’s favorite stories from this year is about a YouTuber who heard their story and decided to spread awareness of the disaster’s impact. 

“Everybody has their little things they do to get away from the stress of the world. My wife’s is the kitchen, mine is RC cars,” shared Mr. Daye.  After the floods, many of the RC cars were lost or damaged. Trying to help her husband get back to his hobby, Mrs. Daye reached out to his favorite YouTuber to ask for advice on what was fixable.  

All the way in California, this YouTuber reached back out wanting to hear their story. They quickly began talking, and not only did he collect replacement batteries for the RC cars, he also gave a shout out to the Dayes on his channel, with their permission, to help raise awareness of the continuing recovery.  

 “One of the ladies that watched the video owns a store in Knoxville where my wife is from, and where we go to her doctor’s appointments,” continued Mr Daye. This store owner reached out and invited them to visit next time they were in town. So on their next doctor’s visit, Mr. Daye discovered that the RC shop was only a few minutes away. 

Upon entering the store, the Dayes found that the shop owner had set up a collection box for anyone to contribute to restoring their RC collection. The Dayes were so impressed and touched by the RC community; that people they had never met reached out from across the country and ended up connecting them with someone right down the street.  

“Now anytime we are down there and have a little extra time I always stop in to see them. They’re just amazing people,” explained Mr. Daye. “It’s people like that, it’s your volunteers, and people that you can just tell love life. They are going to help other people quicker than anybody else. And it’s not people that are rich, or have the means to do it, it’s just people with good hearts.” 

 Will you be part of the recovery in Johnson County, TN?  

VOLUNTEER – sign up and find out more on our website  

DONATE – these projects are made possible by consistent donations  

SHARE – these stories and your volunteer stories to get more people involved