Easton family rallies community to deliver necessities to Hurricane Helene victims

EASTON, Pa. — An Easton family is rallying the Lehigh Valley to help victims of Hurricane Helene, and they’re bringing that relief directly to a North Carolina community close to their hearts.

Emilie Coppola and her husband Hans Ertle, who own Ground Zero Performance in Easton, have been gradually moving their family and business down to Mill Spring, North Carolina, just outside Lake Lure, over the past few years.

When Hurricane Helene struck their neck of the woods, Coppola and Ertle’s children and other family members were right in the midst of it all. While their family is thankfully safe, only having lost power, they have seen the extent of the damage to the area, and have been inspired to help.

As of Wednesday, Hurricane Helene has claimed the lives of 175 people, with hundreds missing. Large swaths of North Carolina have been devastated, with 90 deaths in the state so far. Power outages have been common, food and basic supplies are scarce, and despite the efforts of FEMA and numerous other organizations, the need continues to be great.

“We’re right outside of the Chimney Rock area, which is where I would take the kids to lunch after school, sometimes at the Old Rock Café, which is in a lot of the videos you can see," Coppola said. "It’s just obliterated, and the whole town is basically just washed away."

With a mission to get to their children, but an actual roadblock preventing them from setting out right away, the couple decided they would take some time collecting donations once they were able to travel.

So they put out a call, looking to pack their 24-foot enclosed car trailer and heavy-duty truck with as much as they could get together, including fuel transfer tanks and gasoline containers.

But most importantly, they wanted to know exactly what the victims of the hurricane needed themselves.

“I made a post in the local Lake Lure group asking what they needed,” Coppola said. “So the locals provided me with their list of needs and priorities, and I’ve tailored our request list to meet what they’ve asked for predominantly food and fuel, because they can’t get to anywhere with fuel, and they need it for chainsaws and generators.”

Coppola has placed anAmazon Wishlist on a Facebook post, requesting contributions for large plastic totes with lids, non-perishable foods, batteries, baby supplies, cleaning supplies, basic clothing, and more, as well as her Venmo name (GirlyVR4) for cash contributions.

The response has been incredible, she said.

“The Amazon donations have been phenomenal. The delivery people, they started leaving the whole Amazon bags full of boxes because they gave up on unloading them. We’re having multiple deliveries a day. We have another one coming tonight, and I believe another one coming tomorrow,” Coppola said early Wednesday afternoon.

“The Venmo donations have [also] been phenomenal. I think we’re about a little over $3,000, just shy of $3,500, so far through Venmo. And I’ve had a couple people Zelle it to me through family. So we’re probably between $4,000 and $5,000 that’ll be used for filling in whatever supplies we need.”

Coppola said one of the most important missions once they arrive in North Carolina will be making fuel runs for residents. They have already had a contribution of a 100-gallon fuel transfer tank to bring alone, and they are planning to pick up more tanks and containers to keep the residents supplied.

While road closures remain an issue, Coppola said the couple plans to set off on Thursday afternoon, likely taking a route that ventures through South Carolina before looping back up to the north. If luck prevails, they’ll be on the scene by Friday, she said.

In the meantime, the pair are asking the community to drop off some priority items that have been lacking, particularly baby formula, diapers, and fresh packages of shirts, socks, and underwear.

Anyone who wishes to contribute is encouraged to message Coppola on Facebook before dropping items off between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. at 1325 E. Lynn St., notable for its bright blue door.

Coppola said they will continue to take cash contributions via apps as long as they are in North Carolina, likely for at least a week or two.

Since putting out the call, Coppola said she has been “in tears” over the Lehigh Valley’s response, with a local soap maker supplying “the most beautiful bars of soap that she handmade,” in addition to a family who brought children’s toys and supplies and all the orders from Amazon.

“It's really put me to tears to see how people have just jumped to help because we went through flooding with our business in 2005 and 2006, and to have the community come out to support you when you're at the worst point… There's nothing like that, it gives you a little bit of hope that everything's going to be okay at the end of the day,” Coppola said.

“I'm really, truly thankful that so many people have reached out and offered their help and support and brought things over. Because I know bringing it down there, it's an uplifting feeling for people when somebody comes in to help. It's truly been a wonderful thing.”