Help Madison County

Dear friends & family of LightEn,

The full scale of Hurricane Helene’s trail of destruction will continue to emerge in the coming weeks and months, but we know already that this has been an unprecedented tragedy for our local community of Madison County, North Carolina, where our new LightEn Center of Consciousness & Action is located. The catastrophic flood waters, which surged to a height of over 20 feet in the small historic town of Marshall, have wrought incalculable damage, and citizens are grappling with heart-breaking loss on so many fronts. This will be a long road to recovery for the town and region.

Our LightEn North Carolina team is on the ground and will continue to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our community which has already demonstrated extraordinary resilience, selflessness, and spirit in the midst of this crisis. As reported in the news, the immediate reality has been that despite suffering from “apocalyptic” destruction, “Marshall is essentially handling its recovery effort on its own, with about 100 volunteers.”

Our North Carolina team members are amongst those volunteers, and our efforts include: sourcing and providing heavy construction equipment, PPE such as hazmat suits and boots, food supplies, and Starlinks for internet connectivity and communications; coordinating logistical support; and simply shovelling mud, hauling water, and holding close the many who are shocked and grieving.

For those in our network who want to help from afar, LightEn has chosen Global Impact, a fundraising intermediary, in order to direct your donations to a range of key community-based organisations in Marshall. These organisations are operating on the frontlines now and they will continue to do so long after media coverage and public interest has moved on. To maximise the impact of every donation, LightEn will cover all the intermediary’s fees. We will then draw on our local knowledge and presence to guide the funds to those services addressing the most critical needs, including: food and water, housing and shelter, emergency services, and community rebuilding. 

At LightEn, our team is guided by a call to service, and we know that our friends and family feel similarly. We set up the Response and Resilience Fund for Madison County because we were hearing from so many compassionate souls who wanted to help. We thank you for your support of this community and will keep you updated about the fund’s impact. 

If you have any questions, suggestions, or perhaps notes of encouragement that you’d like to reach the frontlines, please contact:

Ellen Agler, our Executive Director for the LightEn Center for Consciousness & Action at [email protected], with copy to her EA, Sara Olson [email protected]. 

In solidarity, 
The LightEn Global Team