(Danville) — Local college students are taking to the air to bring relief to Hurricane victims.
Averett Aeronautics is collecting donations that they literally FLY to areas that are recovering from catastrophic flooding in the wake of Hurricane Helene.
On Thursday, Averett President Doctor Tiffany Franks helped sort through donations and package them for transport.
“I was already wondering what it is that we can do to help when our University Chaplain Sean Timmons reached out asking if it is possible for us to fly some supplies, and I said, ‘Absolutely.’ ” said Averett Chief Flight Instructor Travis Williams. “I sent out an email to all of my staff to see who wanted to help, and the response has been amazing.”
Averett spokesperson Cassie Jones says 15-to-20 flights have already gone out to parts of western North Carolina and more will continue over the next week or two. They may also make deliveries to northern Georgia.
The first flights delivered non-perishable foods, water, first aid supplies, baby products, and more. Now Williams says the focus is more on cold weather items along with recovery and rebuilding efforts.
“We train our students every day for these real-world types of experiences, and with this, they’re able to live that real experience,” said Williams.
Some students have started their own crowdfunding campaigns to buy goods to send. Others have families and churches collecting donations. Some have ordered supplies from online retailers and shipped them to Danville Regional Airport for Averett students and instructors to fly into impacted areas. Alumni and community members have also given money and reached out to help.