Samaritan’s Purse completes post-Helene home rebuild for a mother and son in Swannanoa, North Carolina.
On Sept. 27, 2024, the remnants of Hurricane Helene caused untold destruction across western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee. More than 100 individuals died in North Carolina alone. In addition, the storm left thousands of people homeless, including Thanh Bui of Swannanoa, a town just east of Asheville.
Floodwaters forced her and her son, Quintin, to swim across their yard to higher ground in the middle of the night. Just days later, Thanh connected with Samaritan’s Purse.
Staff and volunteers began helping her sort through waterlogged belongings. They brought comfort and hands and feet to work in Jesus’ Name.
Soon, Franklin Graham, president and CEO of Samaritan’s Purse, visited Thanh’s flooded home while surveying the damage in the area. He saw the situation she was in and told her that Samaritan’s Purse would begin rebuilding her home.
Thanh said, at first, she didn’t believe that he actually meant to rebuild the entire house, just that he wanted Samaritan’s Purse to help clean it out and repair some small things. However, our full plans surprised her—they were much better than she imagined. Samaritan’s Purse began rebuilding Thanh’s entire home from the ground up.
Samaritan’s Purse volunteers celebrate with Thanh on her front steps.
Over the past 10 months or so, Thanh has been well taken care of by our staff and dozens of volunteers as they walked through the rebuild process together. On July 3, Thanh and Quintin moved into a brand-new home built by Samaritan’s Purse.
“I want to thank every one of you guys. You guys have been a blessing. I couldn’t have done that without you,” Thanh said at the dedication ceremony. “Everything is a little struggle, but I knew that the Lord would be there every step of the way.”
Rededicating Home
During the ceremony, Thanh was given a Bible to keep in her home, signed by the staff and volunteers who had worked on her home over the past few months. She was also given a plaque that read, “PAID IN FULL” in large red letters across an itemized bill statement, with all the receipts marked to zero.
Thanh gratefully holds her Bible and “Paid in Full” plaque in front of her new home.
Boyce Bogden, a Samaritan’s Purse foreman, prayed for her to close out the ceremony, “Father, we are just thankful for all your many blessings keeping everybody safe in all that went on. … Lord, we love You. We know You love her. In Jesus’ Name, amen.” He said that while he was obviously glad for Thanh, it was a bittersweet day for him as it marked the close of a great project.
Thanh and Quintin had family all over the country that checked in on them during the rebuild and visited for the ceremony. Quin, her daughter, lives in Minneapolis, and Tammy, Thanh’s sister, lives in California. They both attended the ceremony and joyfully thanked volunteers and Samaritan’s Purse staff.
Thanh, already a believer, said that her faith has been encouraged by “the Lord’s blessing, and with the work, the volunteers—everybody’s there, cheerful and encouraging from the wintertime to right now.”
Boyce Bogden, Samaritan’s Purse rebuild foreman, prays over Thanh during the dedication.
We thank God for the ministry opportunities that He’s given to Samaritan’s Purse. Please pray for recovering homeowners and for our teams as they continue rebuilding in North Carolina and Tennessee.
A plaque by Thanh’s front door displays Matthew 7:24 as a reminder of God’s faithfulness.
