EmergencyRV takes donated RVs, spruces them up and gives them to families in need all over the United States. The nonprofit has helped survivors of all kinds of disasters, including those who lost their homes in Hurricane Helene.
MARION, N.C. – In the wake of recent disasters, Colorado-based EmergencyRV has been offering services to families left homeless by Mother Nature.
The nonprofit organization, founded by Woody Faircloth, donates RVs to families in need of emergency housing, a demand that has surged following the impacts of Hurricane Helene.
“RVs provide a beacon of stability,” Faircloth said in a Thanksgiving Day interview on FOX Weather from hard-hit North Carolina. “It’s just crazy what’s happening here.”
Hurricane Helene made landfall along Florida’s Big Ben on Sept. 26, but the storm system’s catastrophic flooding caused widespread destruction in the Southeast.
More than 230 fatalities were reported in the immediate aftermath of the hurricane, with most occurring in the western part of the Tar Heel State.
Faircloth said 44 RVs have been delivered so far, with at least 11 others in the pipeline, to help families of veterans, first responders and others with critical needs.
“People are donating RVs that are in good working order, and we can give the donors the full appraised value as a tax deduction,” Faircloth explained. “And we gift that RV to these families who need them…We give them the keys and the title, and it’s theirs.”
The program began in 2019 after Faircloth and his daughter donated an RV to a family impacted by California’s Camp Fire and efforts eventually expanded to disasters around the country.
Faircloth said he expects a surge in the need for additional shelters once FEMA hotel vouchers for displaced families expire.
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Little Crabtree Creek is littered with storm debris and vehicles, on Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, three weeks after Hurricane Helene flooded the South Toe River and adjacent creeks near Micaville in Yancey County, North Carolina. (Robert Willett/The News & Observer/Tribune News Service via Getty Images) ( )
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A bridge and road are washed away in Bee Log, Burnsville, North Carolina, October 6, 2024, in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. (Photo by ALLISON JOYCE/AFP via Getty Images) ( )
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An aerial view of vehicles passing flood damage in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene on October 4, 2024 in Swannanoa, North Carolina. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
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The Flowering Bridge after Helene. (Reprinted with permission from the Lake Lure Flowering Bridge)
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Heavy rains from hurricane Helene caused record flooding and damage on September 28, 2024 in Asheville, North Carolina. (Melissa Sue Gerrits)
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In an aerial view, flood damage, including mangled railroad tracks, wrought by Hurricane Helene is seen along the French Broad River on October 3, 2024 in Marshall, North Carolina. (Mario Tama)
HURRICANE HELENE STILL DISRUPTING SOME SHIPPING SERVICES AS HOLIDAY SEASON APPROACHES
“We’re all blessed. You know, our worst days are not a problem. The things that bother you during your day that you think are a problem are really not until you meet somebody going through real adversity and these families are, and we just want to help every one of them,” said Faircloth.
To donate an RV or learn more about EmergencyRV, visit their website at EmergencyRV.org.
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