Written By 4/C Thomas Daley

Today we started our day by waking up at 0630. We ate breakfast, prepared for the day by dressing warmly in our boilersuits, and as my group had a different project today, we headed to our job site at 0830, about a half an hour later than the rest of the cadets. 

When we arrived there, we were greeted by a man named Steven, one of the main contributors to the Swannanoa Grassroots Alliance (SGA), a local nonprofit organization trying to help the community still affected in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. He explained that the major food store in the area, Ingles, have still not reopened their local branch in the, making it difficult for those without means, to get food. Due to this, the SGA decided to create plots of land to grow community fruits and vegetables as well as building chicken coops for eggs that would be available to the residents of the area for free. Our efforts to help today revolved around cutting down brush near one of the fields and managing a controlled burn to make room for more agricultural space.

During our lunch break, Steven gave us a great local pizza recommendation and accompanied us as well, which was a great opportunity to hear more about his personal experiences with the storm and recovery as well as enjoy a local favorite business. Once we finished, we headed back to the field and continued working for a few more hours until 4:00pm. We then made our way back home, debriefed with a presentation, and watched playoff football together. I thought today was one of my favorite day’s of the trip so far, spending time helping with a valuable community project as well as bonding with some of my classmates.