KITE, Ga. — In the tiny town of Kite, Georgia, population 161, the aftermath of Hurricane Helene has unleashed a tidal wave of community spirit.
One week after the storm made landfall, leaving much of Johnson County without power or water, local churches and volunteers have transformed Kite First Baptist Church into a hub of hope and assistance.
"Friday, we came down and put on a pot of coffee. We knew that nobody had power," Amanda Harry, a volunteer coordinating food distribution, said. "As the day went on, we realized that we weren't gonna have power for a while. We decided to provide a dinner for everybody."
That first night, Harry and her neighbors gathered enough ingredients to serve spaghetti to 300 people. Since then, the operation has nearly doubled in size.
"We started off with that 300 on Friday night and it's just about doubled. So just about every meal we're between 500 and 600," Harry said.
The church now serves breakfast and dinner daily, with volunteers from multiple denominations working in shifts to keep the operation running.
Whitney Lawrence, another key volunteer, described the scale of the effort. She says the main church has been essentially transformed into a warehouse of donated goods from people all over the southeast.
"Our second meal, I think Saturday evening, came from a man who almost lost his house. He probably has the most damage out of anyone in this community, and he donated everything he had left," Harry said. "That's what fed everyone Saturday night."
But it's not just food that's in short supply. Many residents, especially those in rural areas, are still without power and unable to do laundry. The Georgia Emergency Management Agency (GEMA) stepped in with a solution: a mobile laundry truck.
Mary Jo Buxton, who's overseeing the laundry truck operations, said they opened up at seven in the morning and people didn't know they were there. And just a few hours later, they've washed over 30 loads of clothes. The truck, staffed by volunteers from Kite Church of God, has been a welcome relief for many.
"Laundry is a big issue," Buxton said. "We don't have power. So when GEMA offered the laundry truck, they decided to place it here in Kite."
For many volunteers, their faith has been a driving force behind their service.
"This is not about just one church," Lawrence said. "It is about the church, and everybody has shown up and really, really been a great support."
The church plans to continue serving meals through Sunday, including an outdoor worship service. After that, they'll reassess the community's needs and adjust their efforts accordingly.
For now, the volunteers remain committed to their cause.
"It's just the best feeling of tired you've ever felt, the most tired you've ever been,” Harry said. “But it feels good knowing that we're doing what we were called to do. There's nobody hungry that we haven't covered."
For more info, you can visit the church's outreach page on Facebook.