One year ago, Hurricane Helene swept through western North Carolina and left an imprint we will never forget. In Haywood County, the storm touched every corner of our lives. Lives were lost, homes and roads were destroyed, and the familiar was stripped away in an instant. For many, including members of our own staff, the impact was deeply personal, leaving scars that remain even as recovery continues.

What stands out most to me from those days is not the destruction, but the way our community and our hospital family responded. Even in the most uncertain hours, when many didn’t know what awaited them at home, our team never wavered in caring for patients. The lights may have flickered, but the work of healing did not stop.

I watched as colleagues came together in ways I had never seen before. It didn’t matter whether you were a physician, a nurse, a housekeeper, or part of our support services team, everyone leaned in, side by side, with a shared commitment to serve. In the hallways and patient rooms of HRMC, titles fell away. What remained was a unified purpose: to be there for those who needed us.

We were honored to continue providing care without interruption throughout the storm, but that continuity was not about heroics. It was about compassion, dedication, and an unspoken promise to our community that we would not falter, even in the face of extraordinary challenges.

Over the past year, I’ve carried with me the memory of that teamwork and resilience. It reflects the very best of who we are, not only as healthcare workers, but as neighbors and friends bound together by these mountains we call home.

Our communities are still rebuilding, piece by piece. Homes are being repaired and lives slowly steadied. Alongside the hard work of recovery, there is also renewal: neighbors helping neighbors and a deeper sense of what it means to belong to a community that endures.

As we mark this anniversary, may we honor both the hardship and the hope. The hardship reminds us of what we’ve overcome; the hope points us toward what is possible when we stand together. The storm tested us, but it also revealed a truth we will not forget: in the most difficult times, we are strongest when we care for one another.