West Asheville, NC – Nov. 2-8, 2025

Sunday, November 2, we welcomed a group of eighteen men from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Except for one, most of them have served multiple times with Mennonite Disaster Service. Ten of the men worked on the houses, and eight worked on bridges.

Part of the crew painted the baseboard and window trim at Monica’s house. They even hung curtains! Another team primed cement board and put up insulation, soffit, and fascia at Joi’s house. At Susan’s home, they installed siding on a large portion of the house and will finish next week.

The team at Annette’s house had a big job. They removed old roofing and tore out the chimney. They began the difficult task of roofing, including the installation of new rafters and sheathing.

A few of the men commented that the highlights included working together as a team and learning new skills. One man who normally worked on the houses spent an afternoon at the bridge site and pounded in the plug (the first piece of decking) on one of the bridges. He was glad for that experience.

Wednesday evening, one of the homeowners, Monica, joined us for the evening meal. After supper, she shared her experience of the hurricane and expressed her appreciation to Mennonite Disaster Service for their work on her home.

Thursday afternoon, a local resident named Tom volunteered to take some of our team, who are usually stationed back at the RSAA building, on a tour of Asheville to show us some of the hurricane damage. He took us to Beacon Village to see the damage there and some of the houses MDS is repairing. In Beacon Village, we received the unexpected surprise of a bear sighting! He also drove us out to see some of the newly built bridges and drove us across one of them.

Saturday, some of the MDS long-term team members enjoyed the afternoon at Catawba Falls, which included hiking up 580 steps and descending along a picturesque trail.