On Sunday, roughly 1,800 musical instruments were distributed for free at Warren Wilson College outside Asheville in Swannanoa, NC, an impoverished riverside community that was hit particularly hard by the rising floodwaters that came with Hurricane Helene in September 2024.
Sunday’s first-come, first-serve giveaway was in the works for months thanks to the internationally syndicated WoodSongs Old-Time Radio Hour, which collected instruments for those in the Southeast who lost theirs in the storm. WoodSongs host Michael Johnathon and his team collected instruments from 36 drop-off locations across Appalachia in Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia, Tennessee, and Virginia and as far away as Texas and New York.
“We haven’t forgotten the situation of folks affected by Helene,” Johnathon said ahead of the distribution. “You are the comfortable rocking chair of America’s musical front porch. So many people donated violins, guitars, cellos, banjos, trumpets, and more. The response has been phenomenal.”
While preliminary reports estimated the total number of instruments to be around 1,000, the number ballooned to 1,600 by the time Johnathon’s team arrived in Asheville on Friday to begin cleaning and prepping the stock of donations. According to on-site coverage from WNC’s Fiasco Media, Johnathon said they received another 200 instruments. The organizer was happy to report that all 1,800 instruments were given away, free of charge. While the drive was geared toward Western North Carolina and Eastern Tennessee residents, nobody was required to provide proof of address or fill out any forms.
“When people are hurting and there’s something horrible like this, they’re not going to lie,” Johnathon said. “They’re not going to try to deceive anybody and so we just trust them. People are good.”
Among those distributing instruments was 15-year-old bluegrass prodigy Wyatt Ellis. The rising adolescent made his Grand Ole Opry debut in Nashville on Saturday night before hopping in the car (driven by his mom) and coming to Asheville to hand out instruments. WLOS News 13 credits Ellis with helping bring in more than 100 additional pieces of musical equipment.
“It’s just so amazing because I know how much the music means to this area,” said Ellis, an East Tennessee native.
Sunday marked Johnathon’s third instrument drive. The folksinger and radio host previously gave away 1,000 instruments to tornado victims in Western Kentucky in 2021 and more to Appalachian flood victims in 2022.
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Helene destroyed their musical instruments. This group replaced them for free
[Video: WLOS News 13]
While Hurricane Helene and the devastation it caused in Western North Carolina have faded from national headlines, restoration efforts continue throughout the region. Last month, the city received an economic stimulus courtesy of Billy Strings and his fans, who brought in over $15 million to the local economy during the guitarist’s six sold-out shows across two weekends. Those looking to support the area can donate to local non-profit Manna Foodbank and its mission to end hunger in Western North Carolina. Currently, anonymous donors will match donations to Manna up to $30,000. Find out more here.