When Hurricane Helene struck Asheville, North Carolina, the city faced widespread destruction as rivers flooded and entire neighborhoods lost access to power and clean water. The disaster left many residents in urgent need of basic supplies and support.
Teresa, a Home Depot store manager, described the aftermath: “We never imagined with the amount of water that was around us that we wouldn’t have any water to drink. No one expected it until it was too late.” In response, The Home Depot Foundation quickly activated its partner Operation Blessing to deliver essential goods such as food, generators, and cleaning kits to affected communities.
The parking lot of a local Home Depot became a central location for relief efforts. Residents were able to receive meals, charge their phones, access the internet, and collect buckets containing hygiene supplies. Among those assisted were 250 veterans from Asheville’s Veterans Restoration Quarters (VRQ), which had recently undergone renovations by Team Depot volunteers and The Home Depot Foundation.
Shortly after these upgrades—including new gardens, benches, a prayer garden, and storage armoires—floodwaters damaged much of the work at the VRQ. The facility’s residents were evacuated overnight and relocated to temporary hotel housing while reconstruction efforts began.
Since then, volunteers from Team Depot have worked alongside community organizations to improve conditions at the temporary housing site for displaced veterans. Chris, an Army veteran who lived at the VRQ during his recovery from cancer, expressed gratitude: “I had prostate cancer and could hardly walk when I came to the VRQ,” he said. “This place absolutely saved my life. And when Home Depot came out and made the place beautiful, it meant the world to us. After the storm, a lot of the work was gone, but I still have the memory. I’m greatly appreciative.”
Mike, who served in Desert Storm, likened ongoing restoration efforts to popular home improvement shows: “When I see what The Home Depot Foundation and all these volunteers are doing, it reminds me of those home makeover shows. They’re restoring my life—and that’s something I’ll never forget.”
John—a Marine Corps veteran living with schizophrenia—highlighted how seeing volunteers in orange shirts provided hope: “I have schizophrenia, and the VRQ has been a safe place to live. When I see all these volunteers out here helping, I just feel very thankful.”
Jimmy credited both VRQ staff and The Home Depot Foundation for his recovery after rehab: “If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t be clean. I’d probably be homeless,” he said. “Home Depot came out before the storm and helped renovate. They really changed my life, and I’m glad to see them back.”
Asheville’s long-term recovery relies on cooperation between groups like The Home Depot Foundation https://corporate.homedepot.com/foundation/disaster-response-partners , Operation Blessing https://www.ob.org/ , and Asheville Buncombe Community Christian Ministry https://abccm.org/veterans-restoration-quarters-vrq/ . These partnerships support both immediate disaster relief needs as well as ongoing rebuilding efforts for vulnerable populations.
In 2025 alone so far https://corporate.homedepot.com/news/company/the-home-depot-foundation-disaster-relief-2025 , The Home Depot Foundation has pledged nearly $9 million toward disaster preparedness and recovery across affected communities nationwide.
Reflecting on these contributions in Asheville specifically Teresa stated: “The Home Depot Foundation means hope. Hope for anybody who needs it.”
To learn more about how The Home Depot responds during natural disasters visit this link https://corporate.homedepot.com/foundation/disaster-response-partners .
