Owen District weathers the storm
All students and staff ‘safe and accounted for,’ relieved officials say
Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
October 11, 2024
Owen High School Principal Dawn Rookey, right, and Assistant Principal Kim Mason participate in the first Owen Family Day, Oct. 10, at W.D. Williams Elementary School. All staff and students within the Owen District were safe and accounted for, as of Oct. 8. Photo by Fred McCormick
A slice of normalcy came to Swannanoa, Oct. 10, when the sound of children playing and neighbors reconnecting for the first time since Tropical Storm Helene filled the air at W.D. Williams Elementary School.
The event, which is the first in a series of Owen Family Days, came less than 48 hours after local school officials announced they have contacted 100% of students and staff in the Owen District.
While Buncombe County Schools has yet to determine a return date for students, according to an Oct. 9 press release, all Black Mountain Primary, W..D. Williams Elementary, Owen Middle, Owen and Community High Schools are accounted for.
“We’re so incredibly grateful that our kids and staff are safe,” Owen High School Principal Dawn Rookey said. “The relief of knowing that is huge.”
In the immediate aftermath of the storm, with mobile phone service down across much of the region principals across the district scrambled to get in touch with staff.
“We had so many people without power, water or just basic resources,” Rookey said. “Some had been able to get out of town.”
When wireless internet connection was established at the BCS office last week, OHS Data Manager Chasity Simpson began developing a spreadsheet of students and their contact information.
“Some of our coaches, by that point, had already laid eyes on kids in the community,” Rookey said. “So, we were able to check some off. We had a box to check if we made contact and one to check if we couldn’t, but we also had a section for special notes, like did the student lose everything or have they been displaced.”
Teachers and staff with internet or phone service volunteered to help work on the list.
“We had coaches, custodians, staff, teachers and everyone who were wanting to do whatever they could do to help the kids,” Rookey said. “A lot of them were volunteering at the distribution centers set up around the area and working on this at the same time.”
Phone calls and text messages began going out, en masse, Oct. 4.
“It was a team of staff members, calling these families around the clock,” Rookey said. “We asked them if they were OK, and if there was any way we could support them.”
Three days later, all but 25 students in the Owen District had been contacted. Rookey, Simpson, Owen Assistant Principal Nathan Padgett and Buncombe County Sheriff Deputy and School Resource Officer Matthew Owenby set out on foot.
“We went knocking on doors,” Rookey said.
Owen Middle School Principal Bradley McMahan greets parents and students, Oct. 10, as W.D. Williams Elementary School hosted the first Owen Family Day, following the Tropical Storm Helene. Photo by Fred McCormick
By mid-morning, Oct. 8, all students were reported as safe.
It was welcome news in a tumultuous time, according to Owen Middle School Principal Bradley McMahan.
“Knowing all of the effort involved in locating all our kids and bringing so many of them together here today is uplifting,” said McMahan, one of several principals in the district who attended the first Owen Family Day. “Everybody has been through so much, getting families and students together here almost makes today feel normal.”
W.D. Williams, situated near some of the heavily damaged parts of Swannanoa, offered essential items, including clothing, food, water, hygiene and household cleaning supplies. Those attending the family day, which also featured face-painting and balloon stations and various activities, were encouraged to stroll the walkway and take whatever they needed.
“First Baptist Church of Swannanoa had directed people with clothing to bring it to us,” said W.D. Williams Elementary Principal Christy Jones. “We have a lot of clothing, especially warm clothing and blankets as the weather changes, so we wanted to provide them for families that can use them.”
The event also marked the first time many students have seen their classmates in nearly two weeks.
“We’ve had so many kids running up to their classmates and saying, 'I’ve missed you,’” Jones said. “Of course, they all want to know when they will be coming back.”
Only 13 of the 45 BCS schools have water, due to the severity of damage to the City of Asheville water system, the education system announced earlier this week.
“After exploring all multiple scenarios, we believe the best option to safely open our schools as quickly as possible is through bringing in portable restroom trailers with built in hand-washing stations,” according to the press release. “This comes with a large financial burden, especially in a large school system. We’ve turned to local, state, and federal emergency management authorities to help.”
BCS placed a request to set up portable restroom facilities on its campuses, “as soon as possible.”
Students and families from the Owen School District gather at W.D. Williams Elementary School, Oct. 10, for the first Owen Family Day. Two similar gatherings have been set for Oct. 15 and 17. Photo by Fred McCormick
“We are also getting guidance from the fire marshal, the N.C. Department of Public Instruction, and the N.C. Department of Health of Human Services on the requirements we must meet to safely operate schools during a prolonged water outage,” BCS officials said.
The county schools’ facilities teams have been clearing access to schools and making repairs since in the weeks since the storm passed. Transportation crews are focused on remapping bus routes to navigate washed-out bridges and roads.
“When school reopens, we will also be prepared to meet the emotional needs of students and staff once we’re all together again,” BCS stated in its release. “Long time partners and counselors from across the state will be helping our Student Services team support our school family in processing the aftermath of Helene and help with healing.”
Virtual learning can not be set up at this time, due to internet connectivity issues throughout the county, according to BCS, which encourages parents to have children read, write and engage in mentally stimulating activities, like board games, card games and by getting together with other students, when possible.
Owen Family Days, which will be held again at W.D. Williams from 12 p.m. - 3 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 15, and Black Mountain Primary School from 12 p.m. - 3 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 17, are the first step in reconnecting local students and teachers.
School officials are now focused on how to support the immediate needs of students impacted the disaster.
“We’re meeting right now to come up with a plan on how to support kids who lost everything, or have been displaced,” Rookey said. “That’s the case for every school in the county, because have everyone has been impacted in a similar way. Right now, we are all just really happy all of our kids are safe.”