Who We Are

Our Community Tells Our Story Best…

In case you’re unable to view/access Mr. Vaught’s full post, here it is:

First, a little background. Helene made landfall near Keaton Beach, Florida just after 11 pm on September 26th, and by mid-day the next day, was over western North Carolina. Rainfall in western North Carolina over the course of three days ranged from 12 inches to more than 31.3 inches. The resulting floods and mudslides destroyed many small towns along the normally docile creeks and rivers that run through the mountains. As of today, the death toll stands at over 230 people across the areas affected by Helene with western North Carolina suffering 95 of that 230 total.

Last weekend, my wife and I took a load of items up to the Foscoe-Grandfather Community Center in Banner Elk. Most of the items were for the Christmas Store, which allows local residents to go into the Christmas Store and pick out gifts, free of charge, for family members. We also took some furniture to help families who literally lost everything they own.

Ok, this is the part where you need to pay attention. The Foscoe-Grandfather Community Center (FGCC) and Park is a 7.8 acre venue nestled along the Watauga River in Banner Elk. The main building is 2,500 square feet.

Here’s a link to take a look at what it normally looks like. https://www.foscoecommunitycenter.com/

Immediately after Helene, the FGCC became a lifeline for residents who lost everything and had little resources to recover from the losses they suffered. Much of the 7.8 acres is used for relief operations that include firewood, propane, food, clothing, water, diapers, space heaters, and other essentials needed just to survive. The center is open every day and is staffed by volunteers. We were there for just a couple of hours, and during that time full propane tanks were delivered, a trailer load of water, space heaters, paper towels, toilet paper, and some food items. There was also a steady stream of people coming in to get the essentials they need to survive. The FGCC has become the lifeline for hundreds of people across several counties near Banner Elk. The started soon after Helene struck the area and have continued to serve the residents who, without FGCC, would not have access to life essentials.

So, here’s the part where you need to really, really pay attention. The FGCC is led by an Army veteran named Sherrye Trice. She is the glue that holds the FGCC relief operation together. She formed a 501(c)3 named Foscoe Home Team so that the FGCC could provide long-term support to Helene victims and so you could get involved in helping sustain the families in western North Carolina who lost everything to Helene. A link to the Foscoe Home Team website is https://www.foscoehometeam.org/ The needs include financial support but also volunteers to come stay a few days and help with relieve operations. The Foscoe Home Team page has all the info you need to play a role in recovery.

I want to close with a short note on Sherrye Trice. As I mentioned above, she is an Army veteran. As a veteran myself, I know leadership with I see it. I saw it clearly at FGCC last weekend. The role that Sherrye plays at FGCC is not unlike a base commander in a combat operation. She is responsible for obtaining the supplies required to meet the needs of the victims. She coordinates most, if not all the logistics that moves supplies in to and out of the FGCC. She arranges for volunteers. She provides most of the situation updates via social media for the FGCC customers. She has her finger on the pulse of every aspect of relief operations for the area. In that respect, she is every bid as much a base commander as any base commander I have served with. What do I know you might be asking? My background includes setting up bare base operations as the ADVON Commander and becoming the base commander’s executive officer when the commander showed up on the 3rd or 4th plane in. So, I have seen a few bare base operations, and a few base commanders. Sherrye Trice is a base commander.

I encourage you to share this post, and if you have any contacts with the new administration that will be inaugurated on January 20th, make sure they see this. I don’t know what the requirements are for a Presidential Medal of Freedom, but Sherry Trice deserves some recognition for making FGCC the little community center that could, did, and still is providing relieve operations in western North Carolina.

William J. Vaught, Jr

Lt Col, USAF (Retired)