Fayette Baptist Association saw many homeowners and family members prayed for while the gospel was shared frequently. They also reported that one young mom came to faith in Christ during the week.
ELIZABETHTON — Nearly a year after Hurricane Helene devastated East Tennessee communities, West Tennessee churches continue making the hours-long journey across the state to help rebuild homes and lives through sustained disaster relief efforts.
From building tiny homes to installing siding, to delivering appliances and praying with homeowners, volunteers from multiple counties have coordinated through Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief to address ongoing needs in remote communities often overlooked by larger relief organizations.
“We here in West Tennessee have had a lot of tornadoes and destruction and our Tennessee brothers and sisters have always been eager and willing to help us over here when these things happen,” said Mike Kemper, director of missions for the Gibson County Baptist Association. “So we’re thankful for how they come and their coming also inspires our people to go that direction.”
Building more than structures
First Baptist Church Troy undertook the ambitious project of constructing an entire tiny home for a family displaced near the Nolichucky River. Tony Jones, the church’s minister of students and worship, helped lead the effort to build the framework in Troy, disassemble it, transport it on a trailer and reconstruct it on-site.
“They moved in within four days,” Jones said. “Our church collected money for that and paid for that completely. It didn’t cost that family anything.”
The project highlighted how remote communities often receive less attention than larger cities. When Jones’s team arrived in Embreeville, residents told them “nobody’s coming here and helping us.”
The relief efforts revealed systemic issues affecting survivors. Jones encountered families dealing with insurance complications, including one family not in a designated flood zone whose insurance wouldn’t cover flood damage.
First Baptist Troy has made multiple trips since September 2024, tarping houses, delivering supplies and completing construction projects with volunteers possessing electrical, plumbing and carpentry skills.
Mission work renewed
First Baptist Church of Kenton sent eight volunteers to East Tennessee in July for a week-long mission trip. Lisa Howard, who led the group, said the experience rekindled their congregational commitment to mission work.
“We are very mission-minded church. In the past we’ve done several mission trips, but we hadn’t done a church-wide one in several years,” Howard said.
The Kenton volunteers delivered washers and dryers donated by Samaritan’s Purse, installed siding on mobile homes and completed cleanup work for families who had requested help.
Howard expressed shock at ongoing struggles nearly a year after the storm. “Some places were just back to normal. You couldn’t tell that anything had happened. But there were many people also that are still struggling very hard to get things done,” she said.
Howard’s team found families still living in campers while slowly rebuilding homes, constrained by limited funds. “They weren’t complaining, but they’re still struggling. And there’s lots of people like that,” Howard said.
Association-wide response
Grace Baptist Church of Elizabethton housed and fed the team from Fayette Baptist Association during the week they went in August.
The Fayette Baptist Association mobilized one of the largest single deployments, sending 32 volunteers from eight churches to Elizabethton in August. The group included members from Hickory Withe, First Baptist Church Macon, Mt. Moriah, Mt. Olive, Morris Memorial, Oak Grove, Fayette Baptist Church and Oakland First Baptist Church.
“Praise God for the work our 32 missionaries from eight FBA churches did as they served the flood victims of Elizabethton and surrounding area,” said Gregg Haus from Fayette Baptist Association. The volunteers completed one home rebuild and 12 repair jobs.
“We prayed with each homeowner and shared the gospel as well. To God be the glory!” Haus said.
Veteran coordination
Butch Porch, a member of Woodland Baptist Church who has led disaster relief efforts for nearly two decades, coordinated teams of 10-15 volunteers representing churches from Shelby, Tipton, Fayette and Madison counties.
“When we get a storm that comes through, we’re going to be there until it’s over,” Porch said. His teams have responded to disasters across the Southeast since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Church-led response
Throughout the relief efforts, volunteers observed that churches formed the backbone of Helene recovery work.
“The only help I saw up there when I was there, all the times I was there, was church vans and trailers and associations,” Jones noted.
The sustained response reflects Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief’s “stay till the job gets done” philosophy.
“It’s a ministry,” Porch said. “If you’re willing or you’d like to help folks in need, then that’s not a problem.”
Jones credits success to volunteers with servant hearts. “You’re never more like Jesus than when you’re serving somebody,” he said.
For volunteers across West Tennessee, the motivation remains unchanged: responding when neighbors need help, regardless of distance or duration. B&R
