It's no secret, most of us would like to stay in our own home as we age. Yet, sometimes our loved ones just need a little extra help to remain comfortable at home. That's where Always Best Care can help....we are dedicated to exceeding expectations....always.
They say that your golden years are the best years of your life. For most older Americans, that's how it should be - a time to relax, reflect, and live life in a familiar place. After all, senior citizens in the U.S. have worked tirelessly to build a better economy, serve their communities, and raise families.
However, as seniors grow older, completing daily tasks like showering and enjoying activities such as visiting the historic Duke Homestead gets harder without someone by their side. Unfortunately, many older Americans aren't able to rely on their adult children for help. The reality in today's world is that family members do not have the skills or time to dedicate to caring for their parents. That's where Always Best Care Senior Services comes in.
Our in-home care services are for people who prefer to stay at home as they grow older but need ongoing care that family or friends cannot provide. More and more older adults prefer to live far away from long-term, institutionalized facilities and closer to the place where they feel most comfortable - their home. Home care in Volunteer, NC is a safe, effective way to give your loved ones the care they need when they need it the most.
Home Care Services
Service AreasSince 1996, Always Best Care has provided non-medical in-home care for seniors to help them maintain a healthy lifestyle as they get older. We are proud to have helped more than 25,000 seniors maintain higher levels of dignity and respect. We focus on providing seniors with the highest level of in-home care available so that they may live happily and independently.
Unlike some senior care companies, we genuinely want to be included in our clients' lives. We believe that personalized care is always the better option over a "one size fits all" approach. To make sure our senior clients receive the best care possible, we pair them with compassionate caregivers who understand their unique needs. That way, they may provide care accordingly without compromising their wellbeing.
The Always Best Care difference lies in life's little moments - where compassionate care and trustworthy experience come together to help seniors live a fruitful, healthy life. Whether you are an aging adult that can't quite keep up with life's daily tasks or the child of a senior who needs regular in-home services, Always Best Care is here to help.
“Looking for a placement is always difficult for a family. Contacting Sandy to help was”
“I have been working for ABC for two years now, and I am very grateful”
“Such a wonderful place to work! Caregivers that genuinely care with office support that go”
“I bn with this company for Abt a year and I love working for them”
“I cannot say enough good things about this company and the caregivers they provided after”
“This company is TOP-NOTCH! Incredibly helpful and super friendly. If you’re looking for a part-time”
“Sandy is very knowledgeable of assisted living options in the Winston Salem area. She helped”
“I highly recommend Sandy Bowen with Always Best Care. I called her with a very”
“The staff and caretakers are wonderful. Would absolutely recommend to anyone who needs at home”
“These folks are so helpful! They care about their clients and it shows in the”
“The staff and caretakers are wonderful. Would absolutely recommend to anyone who needs at home”
“During an unexpected hospital stay, Joanne provided much needed assistance. She provided excellent care and”
“If you are looking for attentive, quality home care look no further than Joanne and”
“Looking for a placement is always difficult for a family. Contacting Sandy to help was the best option. She was familiar with all assisted living/memory care facilities around town and was quick to respond to the family with tours. She delivered FL2 forms to physician's and made the transition an easy process. I recommend Sandy 100 % for any family needing a smaller community for their elderly family member.”
“I have been working for ABC for two years now, and I am very grateful for my position. The staff are acceptable, the clients are lovely, and the environments are professional. I highly recommend PCAs and CNAs to apply.”
“Such a wonderful place to work! Caregivers that genuinely care with office support that go above and beyond for staff/clients. Highly recommend for employment and senior in-home care support.”
“I bn with this company for Abt a year and I love working for them . They work with you,they care about ur personal life/ problems, really good at matching you with good clients..”
“I cannot say enough good things about this company and the caregivers they provided after my mom's recent accident and stay in a rehab facility. The staff were constantly in communication with us keeping us abreast of any little or big updates. Their attitudes were always helpful and they seemed to genuinely care. The caregivers they sent to sit with and take care of mom were EXCELLENT. I'm not sure how many different caregivers she had over the few weeks of her stay but there wasn't a single one that wasn't kind and extremely helpful. It took a tremendous load off of everyone in our family knowing that she was being well cared for when we couldn't be there. Thank you to Brandi, Joanne, Gina, and anyone I'm missing for everything you all did for us from the beginning of the process all the way to my mom's release today. Hopefully, we won't need your services again, but if we do, I know who I will be calling!”
“This company is TOP-NOTCH! Incredibly helpful and super friendly. If you’re looking for a part-time in caregiving, this is it! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️”
“Sandy is very knowledgeable of assisted living options in the Winston Salem area. She helped with a family member’s search with care and consideration. We highly recommend.”
“I highly recommend Sandy Bowen with Always Best Care. I called her with a very tight timeframe to find a suitable memory care facility for my family member. She asked a lot of questions about my loved one to try and get to know her as much as possible. She worked very fast and lined up several appointments for us to tour places within a matter of days. She explained the process to me every step of the way and made sure we stayed on track. She attended the appointments with me and asked questions that I would never think to ask. I can’t thank her enough.”
“The staff and caretakers are wonderful. Would absolutely recommend to anyone who needs at home care for themselves or loved ones”
“These folks are so helpful! They care about their clients and it shows in the service! I highly recommend ????”
“The staff and caretakers are wonderful. Would absolutely recommend to anyone who needs at home care for themselves or loved ones”
“During an unexpected hospital stay, Joanne provided much needed assistance. She provided excellent care and supportive advocacy. It made dealing with the discomfort more bearable and gave me a safeguard to decipher the complicated choices to resolve health issues. I highly recommend this service.”
“If you are looking for attentive, quality home care look no further than Joanne and her team. A passion for excellence is driven for from this team. Family oriented and willing to work with all families.”
Home is where the heart is. While that saying can sound a tad cliche, it is especially true for many seniors living in America. When given a choice, older adults most often prefer to grow older at home. An AARP study found that three out of four adults over the age of 50 want to stay in their homes and communities as they age.
When you begin to think about why, it makes sense. Home offers a sense of security, comfort, and familiarity.
The truth is, as we age, we begin to rely on others for help. When a family is too busy or lives too far away to fulfill this role, in-home senior care is often the best solution. Home care services allow seniors to enjoy personal independence while also receiving trustworthy assistance from a trained caregiver.
At Always Best Care, we offer a comprehensive range of home care services to help seniors stay healthy while they get the help they need to remain independent. As your senior loved one gets older, giving them the gift of senior care is one of the best ways to show your love, even if you live far away.
To give our senior clients the best care possible, we offer a full spectrum of in-home care services:
If your senior loved one has specific care needs, our personal care services are a great choice to consider. Personal care includes the standard caregiving duties associated with companion care and includes help with tasks such as dressing and grooming. Personal care can also help individuals with chronic conditions like diabetes.
Common personal care services include assistance with:
Sometimes, seniors need helpful reminders to maintain a high quality of life at home. If you or your senior has trouble with everyday tasks like cooking, our home helper services will be very beneficial.
Common home helper care services include assistance with:
Using this kind of care is a fantastic way to make life easier for you or your senior loved one. At Always Best Care, our talented caregivers often fill the role of a companion for seniors. That way, older adults can enjoy their favorite local activities, such as visiting Pleasant Garden Volunteer Park with friends while also receiving the care they need daily or weekly.
Common companionship services include:
According to AARP, more than 53 million adults living in the U.S. provide care to someone over 50 years old. Unfortunately, these caregivers experience stress, exhaustion, and even depression. Our respite care services help family caregivers address urgent obligations, spend time with their children, and enjoy nearby activities. Perhaps more importantly, respite care gives family members time to recharge and regroup. Taking personal time to de-stress reduces the risk of caregiver burnout. So, if you've always wanted to eat at the local The Fearrington House Restaurant or visit Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, don't feel bad. Doing so is great for both you and your loved one.
At the end of the day, our goal is to become a valuable part of your senior's daily routine. That way, we may help give them the highest quality of life possible. We know that staying at home is important for your loved one, and we are here to help make sure that is possible.
If you have been on the fence about non-medical home care, there has never been a better time than now to give your senior the care, assistance, and companionship they deserve.
Always Best Care in-home services are for older adults who prefer to stay at home but need ongoing care that friends and family cannot provide. In-home care is a safe, effective way for seniors to age gracefully in a familiar place and live independent, non-institutionalized lives. The benefits of non-medical home care are numerous. Here are just a few reasons to consider senior care services from Always Best Care:
According to AARP, 9 out of 10 seniors prefer to age in place within the comfort of their own home. With in-home care, seniors have a way to stay at home, receive the care they need, and maintain a sense of independence, improving overall wellness.
If you or a member of your family have assumed the role of caregiver for your senior loved one, you know how stressful the job can be. Between caregiver burnout and constant worry, being a family caregiver is hard. In-home care relieves your burden and gives you peace of mind knowing that your older family member is in expert hands.
Unlike nursing homes, where the staff and residents rotate frequently, seniors can foster new friendships and build bonds with their caregiver. Seniors who socialize on a regular basis are often happier, which fosters positivity and leads to increased wellbeing.
No two seniors need the same kind of in-home care assistance. That is why each of our Care Plans is tailored to meet our client's individual needs. We offer plans that cover everything from light housekeeping to more involved duties like transportation to doctor's appointments. Our Care Coordinators will work closely with you to develop a personalized plan to ensure your senior's needs are exceeded.
Always Best Care offers a full array of care options for patients at all levels of health. With our trusted elderly care services, your loved one will receive the level of care necessary for them to enjoy the highest possible quality of life.
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While it's true that some seniors have complicated medical needs that prevent them from staying at home, aging in place is often the best arrangement for seniors and their families. With a trusted caregiver, seniors have the opportunity to live with a sense of dignity and do so as they see fit - something that is unavailable to many older people today.
In-home care makes it possible for millions of seniors to age in place every year. Rather than moving to a strange nursing home, seniors have the chance to stay at home where they feel the happiest and most comfortable.
How much does a senior's home truly mean to them?
A study published by the American Society on Aging found that more than half of seniors say their home's emotional value means more than how much their home is worth in monetary value. It stands to reason, then, that a senior's home is where they want to grow old.
With the help of elderly care in Volunteer, NC, seniors don't have to age in a sterilized care facility. Instead, they can age gracefully in the place they want to be most: their home. In contrast, seniors who move to a long-term care facility must adapt to new environments, new people, and new systems that the facility implements. At this stage in life, this kind of drastic change can be more harmful than helpful.
Institutional care facilities like nursing homes often put large groups of people together to live in one location. On any given day, dozens of staff members and caregivers run in and out of these facilities. Being around so many new people in a relatively small living environment can be dangerous for a seniors' health and wellbeing. When you consider that thousands of seniors passed away in nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic, opting for in-home care is often a safer, healthier choice for seniors.
Aging in place has been shown to improve seniors' quality of life, which helps boost physical health and also helps insulate them from viral and bacterial risks found in elderly living facilities.
For many seniors, the ability to live independently with assistance from a caregiver is a priceless option. With in-home care, seniors experience a higher level of independence and freedom - much more so than in other settings like a nursing home. When a senior has the chance to age in place, they get to live life on their own terms, inside the house that they helped make into a home. More independence means more control over their personal lives, too, which leads to increased levels of fulfillment, happiness, and personal gratification. Over time, these positive feelings can manifest into a healthier, longer life.
More independence, a healthier life, and increased comfort are only a few benefits of aging in place. You have to take into consideration the role of cost and convenience. Simply put, it's usually easier and more affordable to help seniors age in place than it is to move them into an institutional care facility. According to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, seniors who age in the comfort of their homes can save thousands of dollars per month.
In-home care services from Always Best Care, for instance, are often less expensive than long-term solutions, which can cost upwards of six figures per year. To make matters worse, many residential care facilities are reluctant to accept long-term care insurance and other types of payment assistance.
With Always Best Care's home care services, seniors and their families have a greater level of control over their care plans. In-home care gives seniors the chance to form a bond with a trusted caregiver and also receive unmatched care that is catered to their needs. In long-term care facilities, seniors and their loved ones have much less control over their care plan and have less of a say in who provides their care.
In-home care is a valuable resource that empowers seniors to age in place on their own terms. However, a big concern for many families and their loved ones is how much in-home care costs. If you're worried that in-home care is too expensive, you may be pleasantly surprised to learn that it is one of the most affordable senior care arrangements available.
Typically, hiring an Always Best Care in-home caregiver for a few hours a week is more affordable than sending your loved one to a long-term care facility. This is true even for seniors with more complex care needs.
At Always Best Care, we will work closely with you and your family to develop a Care Plan that not only meets your care needs, but your budget requirements, too. Once we discover the level of care that you or your senior need, we develop an in-home care plan that you can afford.
In addition to our flexible care options, families should also consider the following resources to help offset potential home care costs:
When you or your senior loved one needs assistance managing daily tasks at home, finding a qualified caregiver can be challenging. It takes a special kind of person to provide reliable care for your senior loved one. However, a caregiver's role involves more than meal preparation and medication reminders. Many seniors rely on their caregivers for companionship, too.
Our companion care services give seniors the chance to socialize in a safe environment and engage in activities at home. These important efforts boost morale and provide much-needed relief from repetitive daily routines. A one-on-one, engaging conversation can sharpen seniors' minds and give them something in which to be excited.
At Always Best Care, we only hire care providers that we would trust to care for our own loved ones. Our senior caregivers in Volunteer, NC understand how important it is to listen and communicate with their seniors. A seemingly small interaction, like a short hug goodbye, can make a major difference in a senior's day. Instead of battling against feelings of isolation, seniors begin to look forward to seeing their caregiver each week.
Understanding the nuances of senior care is just one of the reasons why our care providers are so great at their job.
Unlike some senior care companies, our caregivers must undergo extensive training before they work for Always Best Care. In addition, our caregivers receive ongoing training throughout the year. This training ensures that their standard of care matches up to the high standards we've come to expect. During this training, they will brush up on their communication skills, safety awareness, and symptom spotting. That way, your loved one receives the highest level of non-medical home care from day one.
While it's true that many seniors prefer to age at home, sometimes in-home care isn't the best fit. For those seniors and their families, choosing an assisted living facility makes more sense. Unfortunately, finding the optimal care facility is easier said than done in today's day and age. That's when Always Best Care's assisted living referral services begin to make a lot of sense.
Assisted living is a form of housing intended for seniors who require varying degrees of medical and personal attention. Accommodations may include single rooms, apartments, or shared living arrangements. Assisted living communities are typically designed to resemble a home-like environment and are physically constructed to encourage the independence of residents.
At assisted living communities, seniors receive help with daily activities such as bathing, dressing, and eating. They may also benefit from coordination of services with outside healthcare providers, and monitoring of resident activities to ensure their health, safety, and well-being. Caregivers who work at assisted living communities can also provide medication administration and personal care services for older adults.
Other services offered within assisted living communities can include some or all of the following:
At Always Best Care, our representatives can match your senior's emotional, physical, and financial needs with viable assisted living communities nearby. Results are based on comparative data, so you can select the best choice for you or your loved one.
Always Best Care works closely with local senior living communities to gain valuable knowledge that we then use to help seniors and their loved ones make informed decisions. This information can include basic care and rent, resident availability, and services provided. Because Always Best Care is compensated by these communities, we provide senior living referral services at no extra cost to you.
Some of the most popular assisted living communities to consider in our area include the following:
For many seniors, moving into a senior living community revolves around how and when they want to make a transition to more involved care. Some seniors are more proactive about transitioning to independent living. Others choose to remain home until their care needs or other requirements are satisfied. Remember - our staff is here to help. Contact our office today to learn more about assisted living communities and how we can find a facility that exceeds your expectations.
The first step in getting quality in-home care starts with a personal consultation with an experienced Always Best Care Care Coordinator. This initial consultation is crucial for our team to learn more about you or your elderly loved one to discover the level of care required. Topics of this consultation typically include:
A discussion of your needs and how our trained caregivers can offer assistance in the most effective way
A draft of your care plan, which includes highly detailed notes and a framework for the care that you or your senior will receive
Discuss payment options and help coordinate billing with your insurance provider
Our caregivers are trained to spot changes that clients exhibit, like mental and physical decline. As your trusted senior care company, we will constantly assess and update your Care Plan to meet any new emotional, intellectual, physical, and emotional needs.
If you have never considered in-home care before, we understand that you and your family may have concerns about your Care Plan and its Care Coordinator. To help give you peace of mind, know that every team member and caregiver must undergo comprehensive training before being assigned to a Care Plan.
At the end of the day, we only hire the best of the best at Always Best Care. Whether you need home care in Volunteer, NC 24-hours a day or only need a respite for a couple of hours, we are here to serve you.
When you're ready, we encourage you to contact your local Always Best Care representative to set up a Care Consultation. Our Care Coordinators would be happy to meet with you in person to get to know you better, discuss your needs, and help put together a personalized Care Plan specific to your needs.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. —Western North Carolina is still recovering after the devastating impacts from Helene, resulting in $59 billion in damage. Catastrophic flooding and more than 200 landslides led to the mass destruction of homes, businesses, roads and bridges.>>>Check out where the state currently is in the recovery efforts here.Find out ways you can go to Western North Carolina to volunteer, how to donate, resources for mental health and state/federal resources for surv...
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. —
Western North Carolina is still recovering after the devastating impacts from Helene, resulting in $59 billion in damage. Catastrophic flooding and more than 200 landslides led to the mass destruction of homes, businesses, roads and bridges.
>>>Check out where the state currently is in the recovery efforts here.
Find out ways you can go to Western North Carolina to volunteer, how to donate, resources for mental health and state/federal resources for survivors all listed below.
Want your organization to be added to this list below? Send an email with details to [email protected]
Disaster Distress Helpline - 1-800-985-5990
Disaster Distress Helpline is the first national hotline dedicated to providing year-round disaster crisis counseling. This toll-free, multilingual, crisis support service is available 24/7 to all residents in the U.S. and its territories who are experiencing emotional distress related to natural or human-caused disasters. Call or text 1-800-985-5990.
Find out more by visiting the National Disaster Distress Helpline
988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline - Dial 988
Dial 988 for free, 24/7, confidential support for anyone in emotional distress or experiencing a mental health crisis. Specially trained counselors are available, including those familiar with first responder needs. For more, visit 988 Lifeline.
NC 211 - 1-888-892-1162
Information About Local Resources and Services In the County and General Disaster Support.
Hope4NC - 1-855-587-3463
General Population Crisis Counseling Service
First Responder Crisis Helplines
RAI Helpline - 1-866-731-6901
First Responders helpline provides mental health professionals, wellness coordinators and professionally trained peers. Peer support and consultation is available to all North Carolina first responder agencies.
Frontline Helpline – 1-866-676-7500
Operated by Frontline Responder Services, this helpline offers 24/7 support with call-takers who are experienced first responders. Assistance is tailored specifically to those who serve on the front lines.
Safe Call Now – 1-206-459-3020
A confidential, 24/7 helpline staffed by current and former first responders. Safe Call Now supports first responders and their family members with peer-based guidance and crisis intervention.
NC Disaster Case Management
The North Carolina Disaster Case Management Program is available to guide survivors through the recovery process.
Fill out the NC-DCM survey online or call 844-746-2326 to describe your needs. A case manager will contact you as soon as possible to start your recovery plan make a recovery plan that fits your needs.
Check out this video on what to expect before applying for disaster assistance.
North Carolina Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster
If you are seeking information on volunteer opportunities, please visit ncvoad.org/volunteer. Also, search below for opportunities by region and agency by visiting the link. For additional opportunities beyond the list below provided by North Carolina, visit here.
Want your organization to be added to this list below? Send an email with details to [email protected]
RISE Disaster Relief and Recovery Inc.
Hearts With Hands
Lost Province Center for Cultural Arts/Old Lansing School
Asheville Dream Center
Baptists on Mission
Core Response - Community Organized Relief Efforts
Resilient Recovery NC
NECHAMA Jewish Response to Disaster
Fuller Center Disaster ReBuilders
Samaritan's Purse
Spokes of Hope
Precision Grading
Project Skyline
Samaritan's Purse
North Carolina Community Foundation's Disaster Relief
American Red Cross
Keep up with the latest news and weather by downloading the WXII app here.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Charlotte Douglas International Airport is consistently ranked one of the busiest airports in North America.It's an American Airlines hub and a massive place with five different concourses.Jim Cogdell is a dedicated volunteer who has always been happy to help passengers cut through the confusion of travel.What You Need To Know He wears a red "ask me" button and gets a lot of eyeballs."There's a lot of six degrees of separation, and you find somethin...
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Charlotte Douglas International Airport is consistently ranked one of the busiest airports in North America.
It's an American Airlines hub and a massive place with five different concourses.
Jim Cogdell is a dedicated volunteer who has always been happy to help passengers cut through the confusion of travel.
He wears a red "ask me" button and gets a lot of eyeballs.
"There's a lot of six degrees of separation, and you find something in common with just about everybody you meet," Cogdell said.
After retiring from a nursing career, he took on a gig as an airport volunteer.
He started after the COVID-19 pandemic and has been a fixture at the airport ever since.
"You get a chance to make somebody smile every now and then which is really cool," Cogdell said.
But it's not always about smiles.
He remembers helping a very distraught woman who had to fly out to Colorado because her brother was in a serious accident. He walked her to her gate.
“'I can sit and help you cry,' and that's all I said, I said it in Spanish, and we sat there for 30 minutes, and I got her on her flight to Denver and that was it. I'll never forget that. Her name was Noellia. I did run into her when she came back, and she said everything was fine, her brother was OK,” Cogdell said.
Diana May is the airport's volunteer programs manager, and she said Cogdell is kind and compassionate in his dealings with passengers.
"Jim has a big heart, and he wears [it on] his sleeve, and we couldn't do it without him. Jim has gone above and beyond in his role," she said. "He's done an extraordinary 412 hours just this year alone, and over the past three years he has assisted more than 30,000 customers."
Volunteers like Cogdell help passengers navigate any potential issues that could arise in the more than 2 million square foot of the airport.
Cogdell also remembers helping a woman who had that "tell-tale sign" of confusion on her face.
“If you've been a volunteer for a while, you see somebody who has the look, and she's holding her boarding pass. So, she's just about in tears, and I say 'come with me' and walked her all the way down to [gate] A-24 and sat her down and said, 'you're going to be fine,' and that made me feel very good, and made her feel good too, she got to Baltimore."
Cogdell isn't only a wayfinder. He's also an anxiety reducer.
“A lot of people are very stressed when they get here, and if you can take that stress away, put it on me, I feel like I've done something. I feel like I've helped somebody."
The airport has volunteers, seven days a week, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
They're looking for folks who can commit to three, 4-hour shifts of at least 12 hours a month.
A small group of North Carolina volunteers with five mules and one horse is helping transport supplies in the ongoing search and recovery operation in Texas.BANDERA, Texas — Along the muddy banks of the Guadalupe River, the devastation is still painfully clear. Homes destroyed. Families displaced. And in some areas, people are still missing. Amid the chaos, a small team from North Carolina is quietly making a big impact in a unique way.“Right now, we in Bandera, Texas,” said Michael Thomas, a member of the gro...
A small group of North Carolina volunteers with five mules and one horse is helping transport supplies in the ongoing search and recovery operation in Texas.
BANDERA, Texas — Along the muddy banks of the Guadalupe River, the devastation is still painfully clear. Homes destroyed. Families displaced. And in some areas, people are still missing. Amid the chaos, a small team from North Carolina is quietly making a big impact in a unique way.
“Right now, we in Bandera, Texas,” said Michael Thomas, a member of the group known as Mission Mules, a faith-based team that includes four people, five mules, and one horse.
The group traveled over 1,300 miles from North Carolina to Texas to support rescue teams by transporting supplies into remote areas of the flood zone that are inaccessible by vehicle.
“Today, we’re hoping to get the mules into a more remote area that’s hard to reach along the creek,” Thomas said.
The flooding in central Texas has created a massive debris field spanning over 100 miles, and recovery efforts are still underway to locate missing individuals. For the Mission Mules team, the work is difficult, but also deeply moving.
“There’s a lot of destruction,” Thomas said. “But the other thing that struck me — how much people want to help.”
The group has been carrying food, medical supplies, and water to first responders and search crews working deep in the woods and along creekbeds.
“What we are doing is a tiny, tiny contribution to all of what’s going on,” said Thomas, acknowledging the scale of the disaster and the efforts being made by hundreds of others.
Despite the emotional toll, he says the experience has left a lasting impression.
“One of the things I’ve been blessed with in my life,” he said, pausing mid-thought, overcome by the weight of the moment.
The team plans to return to North Carolina this weekend — changed, humbled, and, as they say, forever grateful.
SPRUCE PINE, N.C. — It may not look like much, but for volunteers with Baptists on Mission, the new bunk rooms at the old Deyton Elementary School in Spruce Pine symbolize progress for their mission in the mountains.“The volunteerism has been wonderful,” said Tammy Weeks. “It's been great. And they've been patient with us as we're trying to get things going. So we can't wait to be permanently operating out of these facilities.”What You Need To Know Weeks is a site coordinat...
SPRUCE PINE, N.C. — It may not look like much, but for volunteers with Baptists on Mission, the new bunk rooms at the old Deyton Elementary School in Spruce Pine symbolize progress for their mission in the mountains.
“The volunteerism has been wonderful,” said Tammy Weeks. “It's been great. And they've been patient with us as we're trying to get things going. So we can't wait to be permanently operating out of these facilities.”
Weeks is a site coordinator in western North Carolina for the organization.
She’s from eastern North Carolina. The minute Hurricane Helene hit, she knew they needed help.
“My first response was, western North Carolina has responded to us so many times in eastern North Carolina that we've got to respond,” said Weeks.
It took Weeks and her crews a few hours to get up to the mountains. But for site coordinator Linda Branch Pitman, it only took a few minutes to get to the center of the destruction.
“We got the call, the mailbox was covered up with water and once we got out and were able to actually get out and see some stuff, we had to cut trees out, of course, had to wait for the water to go down,” said Branch Pitman.
Just a few days before Helene hit, Branch Pitman and her husband had just returned from volunteering for 98 days at the Baptists on Mission long-term relief center in eastern North Carolina to their home in Spruce Pine.
“We we were spent. Sister, I can tell you we were spent,” Branch Pitman said. “Ninety-eight days. It's a long time volunteering.”
But instead of taking a month off to reset and relax, Branch Pitman says they jumped back into action.
They set up headquarters at her brother’s church and helped their own community from the devastating storm.
While Branch Pitman has been involved with thousands of projects during her time serving with Baptists on Mission, this time, the mission has hit different.
“We've done disaster work, volunteered from Alaska to Puerto Rico,” Branch Pitman said.
But what moved Branch Pitman the most was when the crews from the mission came to fix the deck at her own home that had been damaged in the storm.
“It humbles me,” Branch Pitman said. “The whole circle that we work in. The entire circle is number one above anything else."
"My heart's desire is to glorify God. Number one, glorify God," she said. "And we do that by involving churches and other people. And once we involve those churches and other people, then together we can meet the human needs that people have.”
And with the new volunteer locations opening in western North Carolina, Branch Pitman says she cannot wait to keep helping volunteers help her neighbors.
“When teams come they’ll be able to wash their clothes. We can cook them two meals a day and pack their lunch,” Branch Pitman said. “They will have their own, real mattress that they sleep on. We have a little makeshift medical unit there."
"I don't really care if people know anything about me, except that I'm passionate about glorifying the Lord and getting people involved so we can meet the needs, especially here in my county,” she said.
Baptists on Mission say the Spruce Pine rebuild site is now hosting volunteers.
Weeks says they have committed to being boots on the ground for at least the next 5 years to continue to support volunteers with lodging and tools as the rebuilds continue.
336-654-5001
