Western NC church seeks help with storing donations after Helene aid pours in

RUTHERFORDTON, N.C. (WNCN) — Pastor Wayne Stafford says it all began with a trip to Charlotte to borrow some generators from a friend.

“They had loaded us down with food and water in my church van,” he said, adding that they left Charlotte with more than expected.

“It has since snowballed from there,” Stafford said.  

Of course, word travels fast. By Saturday, donations filled Pilgrim’s Way Baptist Church of Rutherfordton fellowship hall, and Sunday school classrooms — and they have spilled onto dozens of pallets behind the church.

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“The Lord has blessed us; we have a campus full of supplies that we can give out as fast as we can,” Stafford said.  

The donations are pouring in from across the country.

“We have taken in tractor-trailer loads from Michigan, Arkansas, Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, and so many other states. It has been a blessing,” he said.   

“We had two helicopters land on our property with loaves of bread,” he said.

Stafford says 400 loaves of bread later, and he is left wondering how they will store all these donations.

“We are building a building behind our existing fellowship hall just for our disaster relief storage,” he said. 

Pastor Stafford says none of this was in their budget, but they’re holding onto their faith to continue serving the community.

“I can’t tell y’all what the Lord has done, but he certainly has been good, and we give him glory,” he said.   

If you would like to make a donation to help the church build a storage facility, visit their website here.