Lowe's Serves 3,000 Family Style Meals to Hurricane Helene Communities, Boosts Local Eateries Post Storm

Workers at The Beacon restaurant in Boone were in the kitchen before the sun came up Tuesday morning, packing hundreds of family style meals for Thanksgiving. There was so much work to be done, owner Tina Houston was able to hire back dozens of the employees she'd been forced to let go after Hurricane Helene devastated her business.

"When Lowe's called to tell us they wanted so many meals, we thought oh my god, say it again! The quantity was pretty incredible," Houston says.

The Beacon was one of six restaurants across the mountains that Lowe's paid to provide free meals for thousands of flood victims across the region. On Tuesday, hundreds of people lined the parking lots of six Lowe's stores in Asheville, Boone, Banner Elk, Marion and Weaverville to collect the family style meals complete with all the fixings.

"This is an amazing opportunity for our community," Houston says. "There are so many people who have lost homes and family members, you can't even wrap your mind around the loss that a lot of people have faced. We were lucky but I lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in October and had to lay off 35 percent of my staff right before the holidays. It was devastating to have to do that."

She was overjoyed to be able to welcome so many employees back to help prepare the meals.

"When I was on the phone with the Lowe's team they kept saying they hoped this would mean we could rehire people and we did! We had a full crew in here for the last six days. We made a thousand meals to serve five people each and it was a huge project. I'm so grateful for me, for my team and for the community."

"I think this is wonderful," says Maria Johston of Boone. She has faced an especially challenging few months having lost her husband a month before the flood. She was beyond grateful for the free Thanksgiving meal. "Something like this makes a big difference. The community has come together. I've never seen so many people helping people. There's a lot of people still living in cars and tents and a lot of work left to be done but today this feels really good what Lowe's is doing."

Sue Hicks was in line with her daughter and sister. All three are still dealing with damage at their individual homes.

"We are very blessed for Lowe's to be doing this for us," she says.

Lowe's of West Asheville had a few special guests help hand out meals. Carolina Panther Legends Luke Kuechly and Thomas Davis, as well as the effervescent Sir Purr brought extra joy to the event as they passed out rolls, cookies and pies while snapping selfies.

"There are people here today that have lost everything - to be able to provide even a small moment of joy makes me incredibly proud," shared district manager Chris Angel. "Having the NFL, our Panther Legends and Sir Purr here was an extra special treat for everyone. Luke and Thomas greeted every person coming through the line and Sir Purr's antics kept smiles on everyone's faces. Today meant a lot for all of us."

Boone's store manager Chris Reynolds worked hard to get his store open just hours after flood waters rushed into his store and Tuesday he was grateful to be able to continue serving the people of Boone.

"This is my community, I take it personally," Reynolds says. It is truly heartwarming. We were open the very next day for this community. We wanted to make sure we were here for the community then and that we continue to be here for the community. Today is the two-month anniversary of the flood and I'm just proud to be here today handing this food out to people for Thanksgiving."

Reynolds says the thing he's most proud of is the way the Thanksgiving meals are truly a win-win for everyone involved.

"Lowe's knows small business is the backbone of the economy and Lowe's intentionally chose local catering companies to take care of or community needs and it's a double win so we're not only helping the community from a Thanksgiving meal prep but also helping local small businesses."

Houston agrees, saying the order from Lowe's may have saved her catering business. "That shored up a large gap that we were experiencing and it will hopefully be a stepping stone until we get SBA funding or our insurance claim comes through. It's incredible what Lowe's does in the community. I'm blown away."

The initiative is part of Lowe's $12 million pledge to support relief and recovery efforts in the wake of the devastation in Western North Carolina from Hurricane Helene and the extensive damage from Hurricane Milton in Florida. Lowe's will continue its support of small businesses in the hurricane-impacted area on Small Business Saturday, Nov. 30. Lowe's of West Asheville will host a Holiday Pop-Up from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. featuring artists from the severely damaged River Arts District.

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