Though the rain fell steadily down, the new residents of Emmanual Ridge in Breathitt County were happy and hopeful as they received a life-changing gift. Fourteen families who suffered through the deadly eastern Kentucky flooding in 2022 were gifted homes to call their own and a neighborhood surrounded by friends and family who have been through the same trauma.
Edward Graham is the Chief Operations Officer of Samaritan’s Purse, an evangelical nonprofit that organized the build. He said after responding to flooding in the community multiple times, they decided to make a change.
“We went to this one community that we had just left from the 2021 floods. We just left this church, and it was flooded this time, and you see this community, we remodeled some of the homes they've been in it for a few months, and I told my guy that runs this part of our ministry, Luther, I was like; “Alright let's go find land higher. We'll buy it and we'll build the community if they're willing to move higher. we'll move them higher.” And so that is why we're here today, as a result of that conversation,” Graham said.
During the floods and cleanup efforts, 40 Kentuckians lost their lives. Troy Strong, a former MSU employee and alumni, said it was some of the worst flooding he had ever seen.
“I saw water that night, I have never seen water run down the road in the curve above my house. And when I come back that night at 12, I'd moved my stuff because I could tell it was raining so hard that you were wet within, I’d Imagine 15 seconds of being outside. I was drenched. I’d been out there for hours, and the rain kept increasing,” said Strong.
He added he was close to being lost in flood as he was attempting to move his belongings to higher ground.
“About that time the water, the current, took my feet out and under me and I was able to get turned and hang on just a minute, and I got started back up that blacktop road. I was wading and I waded water probably you know five minutes to get out of there. I’d went too far, and I almost went all the way,” Strong said.
So, Strong said he stayed with family while Samaritans Purse facilitated the build of his new home. Most of the construction was completed by volunteers and local tradespeople. Darren Pelfry is the owner of Built Rite Construction. He said he and his team did the framing for all 14 buildings, a feat that was accomplished in around seven months. Pelfry said the entire process was a time for camaraderie, fellowship, and collaboration.
“It’s life-changing. I had several people in my crew that actually started joining, they joined church that didn't go before. And it was a lot because they see all the goodness that that came out of this. No one person could do this. No one organization could have done this and not the way it was done. It's been life-changing for most, all of us,” said Pelfry.
He added that leading up to the dedication ceremony he worked nearly 54 days straight to ensure the homes were completed.
When the families of Emmanual Ridge entered through their new front doors after more than two years of struggle, waiting inside were housewarming gifts that had been donated by people near and far. Quilts, furniture, books, and more were waiting to welcome them home, including a framed receipt that broke down all the costs associated with their new homes.
An organizer for Samaritans Purse addressed the crowd as they stood outside in the rain, directly before entering their new homes.
“Today, each homeowner will receive a special bill. A bill that has 'paid' by each of those line items. With a total of zero dollars.”
The words 'Paid in Full' are stamped in bright red letters across the document.
This newly established neighborhood isn’t just a collection of new buildings, the people living there are a close-knit community of friends and family bonded together by what they have all experienced.