Franklin Graham on Hurricane Relief: Carrying Billy Graham’s Legacy Forward | #119

Summary

Podcast Summary: On The Homefront with Jeff Duden

Episode: Franklin Graham on Hurricane Relief: Carrying Billy Graham’s Legacy Forward | #119
Release Date: October 29, 2024
Host: Jeff Duden
Guest: Reverend Franklin Graham, Leader of Samaritan’s Purse

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Introduction

In episode #119 of On The Homefront, host Jeff Duden welcomes Reverend Franklin Graham, the son of the renowned evangelist Billy Graham and the driving force behind Samaritan’s Purse. The conversation centers around the ongoing recovery efforts in western North Carolina following Hurricane Helene. Reverend Graham shares insights into the challenges faced by affected communities and the vital role Samaritan’s Purse plays in disaster relief.

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Impact of Hurricane Helene

Jeff Duden opens the discussion by highlighting the severe aftermath of Hurricane Helene, emphasizing the ongoing struggles of families lacking essential resources. He notes, "The recovery from Hurricane Helene is far from over, and many families are still struggling without essentials such as food, water, and medical care. For some, it might take years to rebuild and return to their homes" (00:00).

Franklin Graham elaborates on the extensive needs, mentioning the lack of electricity and the urgent requirement for generators and fuel: "The people that don't have electricity, it would be generators and fuel. That's a big thing" (02:19). He also discusses the plight of residents in mobile homes along the Swannøy River, many of whom have lost their homes and lack the means to rebuild.

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Samaritan’s Purse Response and Ongoing Efforts

Reverend Graham details the multifaceted approach Samaritan’s Purse is undertaking in the region:

• Immediate Needs: Providing generators, fuel, and essential supplies to those without electricity.
• Housing Assistance: Rebuilding destroyed homes, offering trailers to those without insurance, and coordinating with local families for temporary housing solutions.
• Volunteer Mobilization: Emphasizing the critical need for volunteers to assist in debris removal, house clean-ups, and other recovery tasks. "We need teams of volunteers, and we're going to need that for months to come" (02:19).

He underscores the long-term commitment required for full recovery: "We were estimating at least three to four years. Okay. It's not a six month deal for us. This is a long term and we're here to help people recover" (06:55).

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How the Community Can Help

Jeff Duden encourages listeners to support the relief efforts through donations and volunteer work. He announces an additional $10,000 donation commitment from himself and Franklin Graham, with ongoing monthly contributions until the communities are stabilized. "I encourage you to join us by supporting samaritan'[e-mail] or even volunteering alongside of us" (01:24).

Franklin Graham provides specific guidance on how individuals can contribute effectively:

• Donations: Prioritizing essentials like bottled water and new clothing items. "Bottled water for drinking is, I think, is probably an ample supply of that... if a manufacturer wanted to give 30,000 or 20,000 jackets or something like that, that would be huge and that would be a great help" (05:01).
• Volunteering: Directing volunteers to visit samaritan.org and select the Helene relief option. He highlights the diversity of tasks volunteers can undertake, ensuring that there are roles suited for everyone’s abilities: "There's something that all of us can do, no question about. There's plenty for everybody to do" (06:07).

Jeff also shares that Homefront Brands is organizing volunteer trips from Huntersville, NC, to assist on-site, encouraging community members to contribute their time and energy alongside financial donations.

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Personal Commitment and Legacy

The conversation delves into the personal motivations driving both Jeff Duden and Reverend Franklin Graham. Both share a deep connection to Appalachian State University and a commitment to serving their community. Franklin Graham reflects on his long-term dedication to disaster response: "I was in a business where I responded to disasters for 25 years, and it was never lost upon me that it was neighbors helping neighbors" (03:26).

Jeff and Franklin express mutual gratitude for their collaborative efforts and reaffirm their ongoing support for the affected communities. Their shared background fosters a strong partnership aimed at effective and compassionate disaster relief.

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Closing Remarks and Call to Action

In conclusion, Jeff Duden reiterates the critical nature of sustained support for the recovery efforts in western North Carolina. He encourages listeners to make recurring donations of any amount and to participate in volunteer opportunities: "A recurring monthly donation, no matter what the amount is, can make a lasting difference as the need will extend far beyond the initial recovery phase" (09:08).

Reverend Franklin Graham echoes this sentiment, urging the audience to join in providing both financial and hands-on assistance to bring relief and hope to those in need.

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How to Get Involved

• Donate: Visit samaritanspurse.org and navigate to the Helene relief section to make a contribution.
• Volunteer: Organize a trip with Homefront Brands by emailing podcast.homefrontbrands.com or contacting Jeff Duden via Instagram @JeffDuden.
• Support: Offer time, energy, and presence to aid in the recovery efforts alongside financial donations.

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Notable Quotes:

• Jeff Duden (00:00): "The recovery from Hurricane Helene is far from over, and many families are still struggling without essentials such as food, water, and medical care."
• Franklin Graham (02:19): "The people that don't have electricity, it would be generators and fuel. That's a big thing."
• Franklin Graham (05:01): "Bottled water for drinking is, I think, is probably an ample supply of that... if a manufacturer wanted to give 30,000 or 20,000 jackets or something like that, that would be huge and that would be a great help."
• Reverend Franklin Graham (06:55): "We were estimating at least three to four years. Okay. It's not a six month deal for us. This is a long term and we're here to help people recover."

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Stay Connected:

For ongoing updates and ways to support, visit podcast.homefrontbrands.com and follow Jeff Duden on Instagram @JeffDuden.

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This summary captures the essence of the conversation between Jeff Duden and Reverend Franklin Graham, providing listeners and readers with a comprehensive understanding of the hurricane relief efforts and how they can contribute to rebuilding western North Carolina.

Transcript

[Jeff Duden]

Welcome, everyone to on the Homefront. I'm Jeff Duden, and I appreciate you tuning in today. We are honored to have Reverend Franklin Graham with us. Franklin is the son of legendary evangelist Billy Graham, and like his father, he has devoted his life to serving others. Through his leadership at Samaritan's Purse, Franklin carries forward the legacy of compassion, helping those in need worldwide, especially in times of crisis like the one now in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in western North Carolina. Samaritan's Purse is located right there in western North Carolina, has been making a significant impact across the region as well as working in Florida and Georgia and beyond. Anywhere people are in need, this organization has been on the front lines of disaster relief for decades, offering critical support when and where it is needed the most. As an Appalachian State graduate, just like Reverend Graham, I feel deeply connected to this area and the people who live there. The recovery from Hurricane Helene is far from over, and many families are still struggling without essentials such as food, water, and medical care. For some, it might take years to rebuild and return to their homes. It's a reminder that recovery doesn't end when the headlines do so.

[Franklin Graham]

Today, my family and I are making.

[Jeff Duden]

An additional $10,000 donation to Samaritan's Purse, and we're committed to donating every month until these communities are stabilized. I encourage you to join us by supporting samaritan's [e-mail] or even volunteering alongside of us. They arrange for volunteers to go into these areas in addition to taking financial donations and distributing critical care to the.

[Franklin Graham]

People that need it.

[Jeff Duden]

Let's jump into our conversation and learn how we can work together to bring relief and hope to these communities.

[Franklin Graham]

We're here today on the home front with Reverend Franklin Graham, who leads Samaritan's Purse organization up in western North Carolina. Incredible organization. We've been involved in various ways over the years. Mr. Graham, we're here roughly a month after Helene. What remains some of the biggest and most urgent needs for the people of western North Carolina.

[Reverend Franklin Graham]

Oh, that's a long list. The people that don't have electricity, it would be generators and fuel. That's a big thing. For people that lived in mobile homes along the Swannano river down in Buncombe County, Those people, those mobile homes are going to. We've cleaned them up. Some of them just going to have to be replaced. And these are poor people and they don't have. They don't have the means. There's some people that had mortgages on their houses. You could get flood insurance, and of course, the house is destroyed, and you got to either build it back or they're going to have to rent, pay off the mortgage. I don't know how they're going to do it. It's. It's a tough deal. We need volunteers. It's. This will be, you know, the third week. And it's. And they're, it's. People are struggling, and so we need teams of volunteers, and we're going to need that for months to come. So if a person can come and give a few hours or give a day or two, that would be a huge help.

[Franklin Graham]

I was in a business where I responded to disasters for 25 years, and it was never lost upon me that it was neighbors helping neighbors. And you can wait for fema, you can wait for the government to show up, but it was always people helping people, and that's the way it's always been. What has been, what can people do right now to come up there and get involved? Where do they go? Where do they report to? And how do they get involved with you?

[Reverend Franklin Graham]

Well, need to go to samaritan.org and click on Helene. We know we're down in Florida, we're in Georgia working, of course, here in North Carolina, we're in Ash, Asheville, Boone and Burnsville area. And so there's plenty of opportunity up here in the mountains of a person wants to come and help and we need prayer. I mean, that's a huge thing that people up here still need prayer. I mean, still, we always need prayer. But I mean, right now, weather's getting cooler. We're getting frost every morning, so it's getting cold. And we just need to try to help people get, get back in their houses, get them repaired or help them be able to move on.

[Franklin Graham]

If people wanted to donate certain essentials like drinking water, food, medicines, what are, what are some of the things that are truly in need right now? If people wanted to donate things, I.

[Reverend Franklin Graham]

Think water is probably okay. Places like in Asheville and Buncombe county, their water systems are for the most part still up and running. Bottled water for drinking is, I think, is probably an ample supply of that. As far as clothes, I think that's a tough one because you don't want to receive used clothes, and that's hard to sort and so forth. But if a manufacturer wanted to give 30,000 or 20,000 jackets or something like that, that would be huge and that would be a great help. But I think the big thing right now we just need. We need people bodies and People to come up, volunteers, let their hands and their feet be the hands and feet of the Lord Jesus Christ right now and helping these people that have just cleaned up and where they can move on.

[Franklin Graham]

What kind of work could people expect to be doing? Is it democking houses, is it demolition, cleaning out sheetrock, things like that, muddying.

[Reverend Franklin Graham]

Out houses, cleaning up debris, using a chainsaw to cut, you know, trees off, roofs. And, and you say, well, I can't do that. Well, maybe there's those in your work team that can do that and you just help carry off the limbs. But there's something that all of us can do, no question about. There's plenty for everybody to do.

[Franklin Graham]

So my experience is in situations like this, three to six months, usually the initial wave of, of cleaning out the houses, getting the trash out, stabilizing people. Sometimes you have to relocate people to new housing because their homes just are not going to be ready, if at all. Is that what you expect? Maybe three to six months for this initial wave? And then people are just going to have to sort their lives and figure out what they're going to do next.

[Reverend Franklin Graham]

Well, the Samaritan's personal be involved. We were estimating at least three to four years. Okay. It's not a six month deal for us. This is a long term and we're here to help people recover.

[Franklin Graham]

Are you providing housing, long term housing options for people?

[Reverend Franklin Graham]

We don't have long term housing options for the short term, but what we'll do is we'll do rebuilds. We'll help people rebuild their houses, we'll provide trailers for people that didn't have insurance, that lost their mobile homes. There's a lot of things that we will be doing in the months to come.

[Franklin Graham]

Have you been able to coordinate with maybe churches from surrounding areas that weren't affected for relocating families on a temporary.

[Jeff Duden]

Basis or what does that look like?

[Reverend Franklin Graham]

Well, I found a lot of people just moved in with relatives.

[Jeff Duden]

Right.

[Reverend Franklin Graham]

You know, it's not like people live here and they don't know anybody. They have an aunt or an uncle or grandparents that live, you know, 5 miles away or 10 miles away or whatever and they've moved in with them. And so his families are helping take care of families.

[Franklin Graham]

Yeah. Well, we certainly appreciate everything that you've done up there. We appreciate you being a mechanism for people to get involved, for people to donate. We're going to keep supporting every month on the month, my family and I, my wife and I, people here at our organization in Huntersville have already been up working with your teams at Samaritan's Purse on the weekends and doing all of that. So we're going to continue to organize those trips. We'll keep pushing people up the mountain as long as we can, and we'll keep financially supporting the cause. So we really appreciate what you're doing up there. You know, we both went. We're both Appalachian State grads.

[Reverend Franklin Graham]

Well, you know, I'm one of those guys that just went to school here and stayed.

[Franklin Graham]

Well, My wife and I talked about it, but we decided to roll down the mountain to Charlotte. But, yeah, our hearts are hurting for these people and we're just so thankful for the work that you're doing and giving us an opportunity to know how to.

[Jeff Duden]

How to.

[Franklin Graham]

How to assist these people.

[Reverend Franklin Graham]

Thank you, Jeff.

[Franklin Graham]

Yeah, thank you for your time today.

[Jeff Duden]

We are forever grateful to Reverend Graham for joining us today in giving us insight into the recovery efforts in western North Carolina. As Billy Graham's son Franklin has carried forward his father's legacy of faith in action, leading Samaritan's Purse with heart and determination for many years. The challenges with these communities are immense, but with continued support, we can help them rebuild. If you'd like to donate, please visit samaritanspurse.org a recurring monthly donation, no matter what the amount is, can make a lasting difference as the need will extend far beyond the initial recovery phase. In addition, Homefront Brands is organizing volunteer trips from our Huntersville, North Carolina headquarters to assist with relief efforts on site.

[Franklin Graham]

If you'd like to join us, please.

[Jeff Duden]

Send an email to podcastomefrontbrands.com or reach out to me on Instagram at Jeff Duden. Together we can offer more than donations. We can offer our time, our energy and presence to those in need. Thank you again for listening to on the Homefront. I'm Jeff Duden, and I hope you'll continue to join us in supporting these very important efforts. Until next time, take care and stay engaged. We'll see you soon.