Mountain Housing Opportunities’ Philanthropy Director, Allison Rollison, is proud to have participated in Leadership Asheville’s 43rd Program Cohort, September 2024-May 2025. The program is designed to develop, connect, and engage citizens from cross-sectors of the community, including business, nonprofit, education, and government, with the goal of strengthening participants’ knowledge of and active participation in collaborative community leadership.
Each year, participants identify pressing issues in the region and create group projects that build awareness and offer potential solutions. Affordable Housing was one of the topics selected, and a group of eight LA43 members coalesced around ideas for projects that might create impact in a short window of time. The group looked to movements like Neighbors for More Neighbors WNC for models on how to reintroduce varied home types to Asheville’s residential neighborhoods, like accessory dwelling units, duplexes, triplexes, and townhomes, and started to plot their course of action. But just a few weeks after their first convening, Tropical Storm Helene devastated the region and caused widespread disruption. Nearly all LA 43 cohort members answered the call to respond to the crisis: they knocked on doors and completed wellness checks, distributed water, fed neighbors, cleared debris, and participated in the “flush brigade” while the region’s public water supply was out of service. They grappled with how to re-focus their projects to help with disaster recovery.
One of the Affordable Housing Group members, Anthony Lynch, shared that his father was currently working to achieve homeownership through MHO’s Self-Help program, but that was displaced from his housing due to storm damage and had since been unable to work on his home. Being displaced was also having a significant impact on his father’s health. Perhaps the group could come together and help?
The Affordable Housing group pivoted their project to support MHO’s Self-Help project site in Candler and focused on wrapping their volunteer hours around their group member’s disaster-impacted father. On a series of Sundays between January and May, the group met up at the site and–under the guidance of MHO’s project supervisors– built decks, hung closets and doorways, installed hand rails, hauled materials, and learned some valuable home construction skills along the way. The group also invited other members of the LA43 cohort to join in.
In total, the Leadership Asheville LA43 cohort contributed over 80 sweat equity hours towards the completion of six new affordable homes. “Volunteering with MHO’s Self-Help program through my involvement with Leadership Asheville profoundly impacted me,” said Maggie Carnevale, LA 43 cohort participant. “As an architect, my perspective of community, compassion, and the power of collective effort was strengthened by my hours on the jobsite. Witnessing the joy and gratitude in the Homeowners’ eyes affirmed that even the smallest acts of volunteerism can contribute much greater results.”
MHO is pleased to share that the twelve-home Self-Help community in Candler was completed in June. Anthony had the chance to join his dad on the day that he received his keys. He watched as his father opened the door and, for the first time, stepped into his new house as a homeowner. “Thank you for showing up. Not just with your hands, but with your heart.” Anthony said, addressing his fellow LA 43 volunteers. “Because of you, my Dad is finally home.”
MHO would like to acknowledge the following LA 43 volunteers for their support: Maggie Carnevale of LS3P Architects, Katy Farlow of Blue Ridge Public Radio, Sheri Keller of Blue Ridge Pride, Anthony Lynch of Black Wall Street AVL, Lucas Moomaw of the Van Winkle Law Firm, Kyle Parks of Parks PR, Allison Rollison of Mountain Housing Opportunities, Bettie Teasley of the North Carolina Housing Finance Agency, and Angi West of Forvis Mazars.
