April 15, 2025
Western North Carolina neighbors welcome The Green Giant
Residents of the Stoney Creek community in western North Carolina drove the last screw and cut the ribbon on their new bridge on April 4, seven months after Hurricane Helene destroyed it.
The bridge is the second to be dedicated in North Carolina by a partnership called “Bridging Together,” co-organized by Mennonite Disaster Service (MDS) and Lutheran Disaster Response (LDR) with support from the American Red Cross, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and the North Carolina Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD).
As she stood looking at the completed bridge, resident Cherie Norton said she thinks the structure is beautiful. “We just can’t believe it,” she said. “It’s wonderful—we don’t have to worry about a firetruck or ambulance being able to get back here anymore.”
Volunteers from MDS, LDR, and other groups built the bridge in one week, with help every day from the residents themselves. The bridge, designed by engineer and longtime MDS partner Johann Zimmermann, is made to withstand the next hurricane—and the hurricane after that.
“We’ve lost two temporary crossings here,” said Norton, who, during the dedication, named the bridge “The Green Giant,” after its light lime hue. “I can’t call it the Golden Gate because—it’s green.”
“It feels like the Golden Gate,” chimed in Dean, Cherie’s husband.
Bridge built under Bridging Together partnership with Lutheran Disaster Response
Replicable model
Volunteers who built The Green Giant will also be helping others follow in their footsteps, since “Bridging Together” is creating a video guide on how to construct the bridges, which are wooden-decked, with steel beams placed over concrete abutments on either side of the creek, supported by steel pilings driven to bedrock. The design prevents the bridge from catching debris or disturbing ecology. The structures are more easily maintained, and more resilient than the bridges they replace.
Faith-based and voluntary groups will be replicating the bridge-building effort, as FEMA estimates some 5,000 private bridges need to be rebuilt in western North Carolina.
“MDS’s philosophy when we move into a disaster area is to never go alone,” said Phil Helmuth, MDS North Carolina bridge coordinator. “This neighborhood is not only receiving a bridge, but they have participated in the construction of it.”
As volunteers constructed the bridge, MDS and LDR are sharing all the lessons learned along the way—and that’s something deeply appreciated by Chris Werner, North Carolina program manager for private roads and bridges.
“I look forward to trying to be as nimble and efficient as these volunteers,” he said. “I know it sounds crazy but if the state can move as fast as this team—that is my hope.”
He congratulated the six residents who were able to attend the bridge dedication. “You now have a permanent solution in place,” he said.
March 2025: MDS volunteers build a 60-foot long driveway bridge that serves 16 families at Stoney Creek Road in Edneyville, North Carolina.
Why volunteer?
Every homeowner in Henderson County was affected by Hurricane Helene, according to Toby Linville, the county’s flood plain manager. “They had landslides, they lost homes, they lost power, water, and phone and internet service for weeks,” he said. “This bridge is not just access—it’s a gift and a blessing.”
Jerry Frye, a FEMA hazard mitigation manager based in North Carolina, agreed. “I can’t believe the progress that was made in a week’s time,” he said. “It’s amazing what has transpired here. It truly is a blessing.”
Kristy Kulberg, chair of the North Carolina VOAD, thanked the many groups involved in this effort—and in all the future bridges as well. “The volunteers can do way more than people think they can,” she said. “We can build a bridge, y’all!”
Wendell Lantz, who was the MDS project director for the bridge, encouraged people to help build bridges and to respond to disasters. He’s been involved in bridge-building with MDS for nearly a decade. “I would encourage you to pursue your passion in volunteering,” he said.
Ray Sipe, disaster response coordinator for LDR Carolinas, thanked the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina, as well as the Community Foundation of Henderson County, for grants, then he closed the bridge dedication with a litany and prayer.
“This bridge is a symbol of how great things can turn out when many willing hands work together,” he said.
MDS and JZ Engineering hold a training on bridge construction at the site of Stoney Creek in Edneyville, NC.
Susan Kim, MDS Writer
