Disaster Aid USA

When Hurricane Helene swept through the Southeast in 2024, its path led straight to the heart of Appalachia. The storm dumped an extreme amount of rainfall in the mountains, causing unprecedented flooding and devastation.

Wind River's President and CEO, Jaime Baisden, knew what to do. His Rotary International District includes Greene and Washington counties, two Tennessee communities that were hit hard by the flooding. Baisden serves as the Rotary District Disaster Response Coordinator, so he immediately began to mobilize volunteer groups to help with clean up.

Baisden coordinated with DisasterAid USA, a non-profit project started by Rotarians, as well as local governments and area Rotary clubs to "muck and gut" houses, stripping out every wet finish from drywall to subflooring, in order to save the structures. This way, people who had lost nearly everything to flooding wouldn't have to start over completely; they'd have an existing house to repair.

Over the course of two weeks, Rotary volunteers put in more than 2,000 hours of work. They completed full "muck and guts" of six houses and made smaller repairs on nine other structures.

This was the first time Baisden has served as a team lead for a Rotary disaster response mobilization, but he's sure it won't be the last. "It's gratifying to know that you're making a difference in peoples' lives when they need it most," he said.

Wind River is honored to inspire harmony alongside Rotary International, one of our many charity partners.