Southern Baptist circle of partnership joins arms help hurricane hit region of South Carolina

GADSDEN, Alabama — News of Hurricane Helene’s devastation in the Carolinas began to spread when a group text message among seven Christian pilots that fly out of the Gadsden, Alabama, airport kickstarted a plan to send help to storm survivors.

“Let’s see if we can fill up a DC-7 with supplies and get them to North Carolina,” wrote Tim Meeks, one of those local pilots.

That text set in motion events that would in time bring life-saving hope to people across the Helene-impacted regions of North and South Carolina.

Upon seeing the text, fellow Alabama pilot Andrew Richardson went to the leadership of his church, Southside Baptist Church in Gadsden, to ask if they could help gather donations and spread the word about the relief effort.