The ToeCane Church

One of our first communities of focus was Toe Cane. Toe Cane is the backside the mountain where my best friend and neighbor has his homestead.... and it is a Very small community. Split by the Toe River, half of Toecane along Rose's Branch (the Green Mountain side) had to be evacuated by swift water rescue teams. For those on the Bakersville side of the community, a sink hole opened up larger than my SUV that cut off all access to the community. There are approximately sixteen homes down in the holler, a few artists' studios and a single church.

A quick lesser known history note:

Toecane, in Mitchell County, NC, became a key hub in the early 1900s due to its location along the Clinchfield Railroad, with the depot serving as a major unloading point. The Jordan Manufacturing Company’s bobbin plant supported the textile industry, while Bill Masters brought the first electric lights to the area, powered by his mill. In 1919, Mitchell County completed its first paved road between Toecane and Bakersville, boosting local commerce. Today, only a few families remain, mostly older residents, reflecting a quieter era in Toecane’s history.

When the giant sinkhole opened up, these residents were completely cut off. Residents constructed a makeshift footbridge to get out for food, water, supplies, and to evacuate the elderly. 

We started delivering meals here a week after the storm. After three weeks of meals, they blessed us by letting us know about the ‘trouble with the church basement’. It was still wet. Three inches of mud on carpet. Water caught behind plastic sheeting and wood paneling. Mold everywhere. 

We had an Amazing team of two from Pennsylvania, who did an awesome job with initial demo. We then had a crew of NYC firefighters finish taking it down to the studs. A week later, Down South Adventure sprayed for mold. Since then, a fantastic contractor, Mike from HRP Innovations drove all the way up from Charlotte to consult on the rebuild. We are so excited to bring back the only community center this holler has in partnership with the residents.

The Wheelers on 19W have been an essential resource for the Higgins community. They accept and distribute food from World Central Kitchen and run a distribution center for the community. I stopped in one day to say Hello and introduce Rising Light Relief, and to check if they needed any supplies. Immediately, they asked if I could add Mr. Travis to my food delivery routes as he is 93 years old and lives alone in Bakersville. We immediately added him and have been delivering him two meals every other day for weeks. When we met Mr. Travis, we learned that when the river rose 60 feet, it flooded out his den - his comfy spot with his recliner, a chest freezer, his wood heater, his tv, and all his homemade canned goods. 

When I met Mr. Travis, he was so grateful for the food. He then immediately asked if someone could help haul the debris from his driveway. At 93, he can still drive. He was cut off from his independence because he couldn't park the truck in the driveway until the debris of his ruined belongings got hauled away. I said I would work on that. It took us two weeks, but through amazing community partners, we got that trash hauled off. And in sharing Mr. Travis' story, we got him out of the raggedy camp chairs he was using to sit in and into a Brand-new recliner. We also got him a beautiful and Brand-new freezer donated and delivered.

All we did was hear a need from a neighbor's family, bring some meals, and share a story. Together, our wonderful community or kind hearts restored much of what Mr. Travis lost... including a freezer, a chair, and his independence.  

Appalachian people are independent and strong. And we all know someone who lost absolutely everything to Helene. As such, when you ask someone what they need or offer to give them something, they say 'No, someone else needs it more.' At Rising Light, we have found that when we provide a hot meal, we get the same answer the first time that we offer supplies. The second or third time we come back, we have built enough trust that they will ask us for what they genuinely need. Our little distribution center allows us to deliver Immediately when we receive a request - from toilet paper to kitty litter to an alternative heating source or generator. When the first snow came through, we sent out dozens of propane heaters with fuel, lanterns, assorted non-perishable foods, etc.'

When we announced we were feeding 550 people for Thanksgiving, and were having trouble sourcing turkeys and cranberry sauce, suddenly we were overwhelmed with blessing of these items. We were then able to pass those overstock blessings on to community members in need - outside of our normal service routes. Community members have begun to reach out when they need simple things like a full propane tank. We exchange the empty and then give them a box and say, here is the distribution center - fill the box with anything you need. And they do. They leave the distribution center usually with two to three totes, in tears and hugging my neck.  We are a zero-judgement space and locals who genuinely care about this community.