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Thirty-six days ago people were celebrating Christmas Day with gifts, meals, caroling, church services and family gatherings. But for some affected by Hurricane Helene in Chimney Rock Village and Western North Carolina, Christmas was certainly different than in Christmases past.
Some of those directly impacted by Helene would have an extra special Christmas.
Nearly 500 miles away in Medina, Ohio, "Promise of Christmas" was given to several hurricane victims in Western North Carolina.
Organized by Mark Klaus, who owns Castle Noel in Medina, the weekend of January 10 became one of the best Christmas surprises ever for six Chimney Rock residents and others affected by the storm. Castle Noel is the country's largest year-round Christmas museum and entertainment attraction.
"None of us knew what to expect, but the event "Promise of Christmas" blew us away," said Village Mayor Peter O'Leary. O'Leary was among those attending, along with his wife Ann, Steve and Mary Jaeger-Gale, Alice Garrard, Danny Holland and Linda Carter.
"We will never forget the generous and hospitable people in Medina, OH, and their beautiful little town. We could feel the love wherever we went," said Jaeger-Gale.
"The people of Medina came out for western NC and showed us so much love, compassion, and support," said O'Leary. "They treated us to several wonderful activities including a welcome celebration and fireworks. We felt unworthy of this attention but it truly touched us deeply. The support of strangers from a small town 500 miles away definitely gave us a boost and needed energy to continue our rebuilding efforts. It showed us we are not in this alone and people all over the country want to help us."
According to O'Leary, Medina's downtown businesses and square were destroyed in 1848 and 1870 by fire but the town rose from the ashes and became the beautiful place it is today. "Several townspeople assured me that Chimney Rock Village could arise from our disaster and become even better than before. Not only do I believe them but I can see it starting to happen already. 2025 is the year of recovery and we will make it happen," O'Leary said.
"Mayor Dennis Hanwell, Castle Noel, Mark Klaus, and the people of Medina are now our friends. They want to continue to help and we will lean on them going forward for advice, ideas, and support. It is truly a remarkable little town and I hope to return some day. I also hope to invite them to visit Chimney Rock Village to witness our recovery," O'Leary said.
"I was most enchanted by actual holiday windows from New York department stores, which I always loved when I lived in the city. Sheer magic, then and now," said Alice Garrard, of Chimney Rock.
"Our hosts continued to make us feel like the most important people on the planet," said Garrard.
News reporter Rex Smith in Cleveland, OH said Castle Noel's Mark Klaus, saw a video of the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene in Chimney Rock and felt inspired to do something.
"He wanted to do something big. After meeting with Mayor Dennis Hanwell and other city leaders, he was able to come up with "Promise of Christmas" event, Smith wrote.
"It started with a private reception for around 200 people from North Carolina who were able to sign up for the event if they'd been impacted by the hurricane," Smith said.
An all-day itinerary of Christmas-themed events was held including a special trip through Castle Noel.
Smith said, "Every year as the year begins, you know there is a promise of a Christmas off in the distance. These people had it stripped away from them. I wanted to do my best, we all wanted to do our best, to bring this experience to, maybe, change the narrative of their everyday mental states."
Much of the event was covered by sponsors and donations. Klaus has been so humbled and inspired by the experience that he wants to create a foundation and do "Promise of Christmas" on an annual basis.
"There's natural disasters. Look what's going on in Los Angeles right now. I would love to be able to provide a break, a mental break, an idea to come and be treated to a Christmas every year." Part of his experience has been the amount of love and graciousness he's received from the couple hundred people who experienced that mental break this weekend.
Celebrating the visitors in Medina wasn't the end of the event. Medina's residents sent children's toys with the travelers that were later delivered to Burnsville for community children.
