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NATCHEZ — Margaret Perkins lived for 17 years in Charlotte, N.C., before returning to Natchez to take the helm at Listen Up Y’all Media.

She frequently hiked the mountains and enjoyed the outdoor areas in Ashe County, North Carolina, which was hit hard on Thursday and Friday when Hurricane Helene’s high winds and rain created a path of destruction up through Georgia, western South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Kentucky.

Ashe County is someplace special to Perkins and her wife, Rene Adams. So special, in fact, the two were married in the small town of Lansing in 2022. Lansing was devastated by Helene.

“Lansing is a tiny town built around recreation,” Perkins said. “The creek that runs through it became a river, barrelled down the mountain, and took everything. The entire town flooded. Buildings were under 10 feet of water.”

Perkins and Adams flew to Charlotte on Friday to visit friends.

“I kept thinking our flight would be canceled, but it wasn’t. We left Baton Rouge on time Friday, and other than rain on Friday, it was beautiful all weekend in Charlotte,” she said.

Like many others, Perkins and Adams spent much of their weekend viewing photos and videos as the devastation in other parts of the state unfolded.

“It just feels…I don’t know. We have a heart connection to this area. I used to hike and backpack there, so I knew the area well. It is an area built on recreation and the outdoors,” Perkins said.

Perkins is working with Lyn Jenkins, CEO of the Natchez-Adams County Chamber of Commerce, and others to organize help for Ashe County. Details are still in the planning stages and when they come together will be a city-wide effort.

“My thought is to adopt a town or a smaller area, like Ashe County,” she said.

Greater resources will likely be coming to areas like Asheville, North Carolina, near the Biltmore Estate, and Boone, North Carolina, where Appalachian State University is located.

Less affluent areas like West Jefferson, Jefferson and Lansing in Ashe County will likely need the most help from others in the country.

“They are going to have many needs, but I know they will need construction supplies. Those buildings were under 10 feet of water. Everything is going to have to come out of those buildings. Flooring, sheetrock, all of that has to be gutted and taken out,” she said.

Efforts are complicated by the fact that the area lacks power, internet, and infrastructure, such as power poles, roads, and bridges, which have been washed away. The area also lacks water, and most roads have been destroyed.

While details of the fundraising effort in Natchez take shape, those who want to contribute monetarily can send funds to Myron Greer, a Charlotte businessman and close friend of Perkins and Adams. Greer is organizing an effort to get supplies, including pet food, to Lansing on Friday.

“I will load on trailers and trucks provided by my business teams here in Charlotte to help with relief,” Greer said on his Facebook page. “If you need an avenue where 100 percent of your donation will go to people in need, and you will entrust me to make this happen, please join me in this effort.”

Donations can be made through Venmo to @Myron-Greer.