Two mothers--both named Maria--experience God's lasting peace and love as Samaritan's Purse ministers to them after Hurricane Helene.
Separated by only 15 miles in the mountains of North Carolina, Maria Sixtos and Maria Chavez have both suffered in Helene’s wake—not only when the historic hurricane hit the area six months ago, but every moment since.
For Maria Chavez, a stay-at-home mom, the storm’s damage to the family’s septic system created a daily nightmare in Burnsville. Each day, she uses water and bleach to wash away the raw sewage seeping from beneath her house. She can’t cook a full meal for her family because the kitchen appliances don’t work, and they have no running water. There’s no need to mop the floors either as they are now just pieces of plywood covering decaying boards underneath. Her house, once a source of pride, is now a burden.
“Living here is really sad. Everything is really sad. My husband hates it because he is a handyman and wants to fix everything like he has in the past, but he just can’t,” Maria said.
After living in poor and unsanitary conditions for months after the storm, Samaritan’s Purse provided Maria and her family with a new camper to live in while they renovate their home.
Hurricane Helene wreaked a different kind of havoc on the Sixtos family in Spruce Pine. A mother of two with chronic health issues, Maria Sixtos has had to undergo five surgeries since the storm. Her husband works hard as a landscaper from time to time, but between their two teenage children, piling medical bills, and recovering from the hurricane damage, the money is never enough.
“What can I say? It’s been difficult times, especially with the storm and my treatments,” Maria said. “We had no electricity or water, but the bills kept coming.”
Maria Sixtos’ home was not severely damaged by the hurricane, but the storm brought chaos for the family in different ways.
“Thank You, My God”
As problems mounted, God provided a way. When Maria Chavez was browsing through a local thrift store one day this January, she ran into Marlene Gonzalez, a Samaritan’s Purse Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) member.
For the first time since the storm, Maria shared her struggles to someone who could help. A Samaritan’s Purse team soon came out to assess the Chavez family’s situation and immediately recognized their need. Quickly responding, we gifted them a new two-room camper to live in while they renovate.
Taking into account her husband’s construction background, we also provided him tools and financial support to renovate their home and repair the septic system—something the family had longed to do since the storm. Finally, Samaritan’s Purse provided them a stove to install in their home as well.
Marlene, right, gifts a special Billy Graham Training Center Bible to Maria during the camper dedication.
“We never thought we would be helped like this,” Maria said when the camper rolled into her driveway. Marlene and other DART members joined together and dedicated the camper to the glory of God.
“When they approved me [for a camper], I said, ‘Thank you, my God. Only You knew the need and You have given me this great gift,’” Marlene continued. “I don’t know how to explain this. My children are happy about the camper; my husband is happy about the tools; and we are all happy for everything Samaritan’s Purse has blessed us with.”
“God Sent Them”
For Maria Sixtos, the pain she felt went far deeper than the physical. Her first child would have turned 21 years old this May, if he hadn’t died just three days after his birth. Over the following years, Maria and her husband celebrated three more pregnancies, each one filled with hope—but none reached full-term. While she finally gave birth to a son and a daughter, she was distressed that they had to grow up with a mother often in the hospital. Battling numerous health issues, surgeries, and expensive medication, Maria blamed God for her suffering.
“I would say, ‘God, why me? Why do You do this to me? What did I do to You?’” Maria said, her voice breaking. “I had so many dreams that I never accomplished.”
Hurricane Helene only deepened her despair. With her husband out of work and her health deteriorating, Maria felt there was nowhere left to turn—until Samaritan’s Purse came to her door. We covered her medical bills and helped with rent and utilities, providing a lifeline when eviction loomed. But more than the material support, it was the Gospel of Jesus Christ shared by Samaritan’s Purse staff—including Marlene—that overwhelmed her. For the first time, Maria let go and truly accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior.
“God came to me in the right moment and that’s when I received His strength to move forward,” Maria Sixtos said.
“Samaritan’s Purse gave me the words of hope that God exists,” she said. “And that’s when I thought: it’s no coincidence that they came here. God sent them. And that’s when I said, ‘Yes, God exists.’ I felt that everything I had been carrying, He took away.”
Marlene recalls the stark difference in Maria Sixtos after she prayed to receive Christ. “I remember the deep anxiety, hopelessness, and fear of death in her eyes,” she said. “After she prayed, I felt the burden lift, and I noticed a twinkle in her eyes that was different from when we had arrived.”
“Be Constant in Prayer”
Every night, Maria Sixtos asks God for one more day with her children. “I pray every night that God would let me see my children grow, find a spouse, and have children,” she said. Please join in praying for the Sixtos family.
Pray also for the Chavez family as they begin to renovate their home.
Pray for God’s wisdom and strength as Samaritan’s Purse teams continue to work throughout western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee to provide hurricane victims with campers, vehicles, and more essential supplies. Our rebuild programs are also just underway. Pray for many people to hear and embrace the Good News of Jesus Christ as we work among them.
“Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer” (Romans 12:12, ESV).
Continue to pray for people still recovering from Hurricane Helene.
