Grantee Responds to Disaster With Comprehensive Legal Aid

When Hurricane Helene struck Western North Carolina, it left behind a level of destruction that few could have imagined in an area rarely touched by hurricanes.

The numbers were mindboggling: 106 lives lost, with 151,000 homes damaged or destroyed and up to $9.6 billion worth of uninsured residential property losses. Asheville’s celebrated River Arts District, home to galleries and art studios, was all but washed away.

Pisgah Legal Services, a nonprofit law firm that has served the region for nearly 50 years, quickly shifted into disaster response mode to meet the overwhelming need. With support from AARP Foundation and other grantmaking partners, the organization expanded its services to ensure that older adults and other vulnerable populations had access to critical legal aid.

Casey Steen, director of the Elder Law Program at Pisgah Legal, explains the complexities he and his organization faced. “I probably had 40 clients that I wasn’t able to talk to or get a hold of,” he says. “Our client base is incredibly rural and spread out all over the place. How could we reach these people? How could we make sure that their needs were being met?”

One innovative solution was a mobile “Justice Bus” — a van equipped with Wi-Fi, laptops, and mobile printing. “We could go to food distribution sites and help people apply for FEMA assistance there,” Casey says.

Pisgah Legal also hosted 36 disaster legal services clinics across 14 counties, helping more than 2,000 people navigate FEMA applications, insurance appeals and housing disputes. “We tried to always focus on being accessible. If there were any barriers that would make it harder for people to get services from us, we would knock them down wherever possible.”

Apart from the physical obstacles, the organization had to tackle a surge in fraud. According to Casey, “There is a robust industry of scammers who make their living defrauding vulnerable  seniors by pretending to be FEMA inspectors. Folks would pay them and never see them again.” Pisgah Legal’s attorneys worked to protect older adults in the community from exploitation, often intervening in real time to prevent financial loss.

One family’s story illustrates the profound impact of Pisgah Legal’s work. The Smiths,* a family of five with a disabled daughter, lost their housing and both their vehicles in the storm. Although FEMA reimbursed them for one vehicle and some of their belongings, their public housing, with its $400 monthly rent, was gone. Hurricane damage made the area’s housing shortage even worse, leaving the Smiths with few options. Now, they were paying fair-market rent of nearly $2,000.

When the family contacted Pisgah Legal, they were thousands of dollars behind in their rent and about to be evicted. But within days, an attorney with the organization got the Smiths approved for $12,000 of rental assistance from FEMA, with the option to get more down the road if they need it.

“I can't overstate what a life-changing amount of money that is for our clients,” says Casey.

Although recovering from Hurricane Helene will take many months, and even years, Casey makes it clear that Pisgah Legal Services’ commitment to the people of Western North Carolina is unshakable.

“We have been here for 50 years,” he says. “We’re not going anywhere.”

*Name changed to protect the family's privacy.

Learn more about how AARP Foundation Grants helps older adults recover from disasters. 

Read more stories about how our programs have helped people find hope, and about the volunteers who give so much of themselves to help others.