BOONE, N.C. — Eric Wynkoop is one of the many people that have made their way inside Hospitality House of Northwest North Carolina after living outside.

What You Need To Know

  • Hospitality House Northwest North Carolina is still working to help people from Helene

  • It is in need of different things this year for the winter

  • Winter boots and propane heaters are a big need

"This is my bed," Wynkoop said.

He was living in a tent before coming here. Wynkoop said he came to the emergency shelter where he slept on a cot in the cafeteria but now has a room with a bed.

"If I was outside during the storm, I would have been screwed. I thank God for this place," Wynkoop said.

Stories like his are not rare to Executive Director Tina Krause, but she said lately they have been hearing it a lot more. Hurricane Helene forced many people to live in tents or in damaged homes that have yet to be repaired.

"With the wind's blowing, it was almost blizzard conditions so we had an additional 18 people come in on a safety plan," Krause said.

Recently when snow moved in they opened their emergency winter shelter to help people get inside.

"Even in a car that could be dangerous if a person tries to stay in a car because there's carbon monoxide poisoning," Krause said.

More people are still needing to go into their distribution center for items to make it through. She said for the first time in a winter season they do not need coats, instead they have other unique needs. They need shelf stable food and milk, winter boots, hand and feet warmers, propane heaters and carbon monoxide detectors.

"We feel like we're going to be double the normal amount of people," Krause said.

They have some propane heaters now, but they don't know how many will be needed soon. They are only using new heaters to be safe.

They also would like help with their Christmas bags. Each year they make more than a 100 bags to give out to anyone who comes in on Christmas morning. They fill the bags with new items like pajama pants.

Last year they did not have enough bags for the record 140 people that came inside, so this year they are making more. They are hoping to have enough bags for everyone

"This year we want to make enough to give out to people that might still be out there but might not have the needs met in their own home," Krause said.