A year has passed since Hurricane Helene tore through the mountains of western North Carolina, but the work of recovery is far from over.

In the storm’s aftermath, the nonprofit Baptists on Mission provided aid to affected communities across the region.

Volunteers with the organization served more than 500,000 hot meals at relief sites in hard-hit areas.

A team from Friendship Baptist Church in Murphy, was among the first to respond.

“Several of us went to either Boone, to Canton, to Asheville, because there were sites set up all over western North Carolina,” said Pam Pressley, a volunteer. “We went many times during the first three months.”

For many volunteers, the devastation left a lasting impression.

“I got to explore a lot of the area. And wow, devastation is unreal,” said

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