SWANNANOA, N.C. (828newsNOW) — One year after Tropical Storm Helene ripped through the mountains of Western North Carolina, the community of Swannanoa gathered in solemn remembrance Saturday evening, honoring the 43 Buncombe County residents who lost their lives and reflecting on how far neighbors have come since.
The candlelight ceremony at Bee Tree Fire Station drew survivors, families of the fallen, first responders and volunteers who worked side by side in the storm’s aftermath. Under a dusky September sky, names were read aloud — each followed by the lighting of a candle, until the parking lot glowed with soft light in tribute to those gone but not forgotten.
“This day a year ago was one we all wish we could take back,” Swannanoa Fire Chief AJ Penland told the crowd. “Forty-three families, friends and neighbors lost loved ones. Our responsibility is to keep their memory alive — and to keep standing together as a community.”
‘We will come back’
The evening mixed grief with gratitude. Steve Senn, a local woodworker whose shop along U.S. 70 was destroyed, shared how he had looked across the flood-swollen river and remembered playing there.
“I just lost my business, but I didn’t lose my family,” he said, voice breaking. “We will come back. I can’t say enough about the first responders, the neighbors and everyone who showed up for us. By the grace of God, things are moving forward.”
Others echoed his resilience. While federal assistance has been slow, many spoke about how local churches, volunteers and neighbors filled the gap — cooking meals, clearing debris and rebuilding homes together.
Poems for the mountains
Writer Anja Woody read her poem Stronger Than the Storm, written in the weeks after Helene, capturing the eerie shift from the roar of helicopters and sirens to the quiet return of crickets and rustling leaves.
“Helene has robbed us, robbed us of our quint towns, robbed us of what we once knew, robbed us of our sense of community, our sense of security,” she read, her voice steady.
Woody talked of a love “more powerful than a river, more powerful than a hurricane, stronger than the biggest storm.”
She was followed by Mary Pembleton, who shared words she wrote a few weeks ago.
Among them, “Helene, who and what you took will never be forgot. We move through our days with loss etched into our palms and a longing and will for a world where it doesn’t take disaster for love to bloom wild and overcome what it is that divides us.”
The poems drew nods and tears from those in the crowd, many of whom had lived through the chaos and the unlikely bonds forged in its wake.
Lessons in loss and hope
Pastor Mike Siemens of Bee Tree Christian Church — more than a century old and heavily damaged — reminded those gathered that remembrance also brings renewal.
“Sometimes God puts us on a path we would never choose,” he said. “Helene brought death and destruction, but it also brought compassion, unity and generosity. Let’s have a funeral for the negatives — the loss, the depression, the overwhelming mess — and let’s celebrate the life that has grown out of this past year.”
He urged the crowd to reflect on what they had learned about themselves, their neighbors and their community. “Some of our neighbors we didn’t know before are now our closest friends,” he said. “Together, may we remain WNC strong.”
43 names, 43 lights
As the names of the 43 victims were read aloud, family members and community volunteers stepped forward to light candles. The growing circle of flickering flames symbolized both remembrance and resilience.
“We want to keep these lights shining brightly. Each one a cherished soul, whose absence leaves an indelible mark on our hearts,” Pendleton said.
A community changed, not broken
The night ended in song and reflection, with residents embracing, some whispering prayers, others wiping tears. For many, it was less about closure than about carrying forward the lessons of the past year.
“I’ve realized there are more good people in this world than bad,” longtime Swannanoa resident David Cody said. “That’s what I hold onto. That’s what keeps me grateful.”
The names of the 43 victims, read aloud one by one, now live on in the memories of their community — not as statistics of a storm, but as neighbors, friends and loved ones whose lives continue to shape the spirit of the Swannanoa Valley.
“While the storm may have taken so much from us, it has not claimed our spirit, our resilience or our love for those we’ve lost,” Pendleton said. “We carry their memories with us, and in each of our hearts they live on.
“As these candles flicker in the night, let them remind us even in the face of loss, there is light, there is love.”
The Buncombe County residents who died in Helene were:
Marsha Lynn Ball
Cathy Jo Blackburn
Brian Hilbert Carter
Angela Leigh Craig
Sandra Elizabeth Craig
Ronald Jesse Craig
George Frank Dixon
James Olver Dockery
Judy Gail Dockery
Micah Ashton Drye
Michael Warren Drye
Nora Drye
Patricia Elaine Fleming
Chase Edward Garrell
Tony Ray Garrison
Gabriel Gonzalez Gonzalez
James Harbison
Jody Nyle Henderson
Lula Bell Jackson
John David Keretz
Omar Farooq Khan
Jessica Lynn Kirby
Lyn Dale Mcfarland
Norman McGahee
Patrick Andrew McLean
Calvin Michael McMahan
Timothy Lee Moore
Sean Michael O’Connor
Freddie James Pack
Teresa Kim Pack
Lisa Renee Plemmons
Patricia Ruth Radford
Nola Lee Ramsuer
Robert Lee Ramsuer
Robert Brandon Ruppe
James Willard Souther
Lois Edith Souther
Kim Kutscher Stepp
Bobby Dewayne Stokely
Daniel Lunnie Wright
Evelyn Lorrine Wright
Samira Jordan Zoobi
(One unlisted name)