A North Carolinian is reuniting families with precious photographs blown away in the storm, offering them critical links to their pasts as they rebuild their homes and lives.
Taylor Schenker, who lives in Canton near hard-hit Asheville, was searching through debris along the Swannanoa River hoping to recover some things from her friend’s house which was completely destroyed.
As they sifted through mud and torn-up vegetation, Schenker was continually finding photographs that had survived the elements thanks to the waterproof glossy paper.
“It was [a photo of] a middle school basketball team. It was a photo of a beloved dog. I found a wedding photo of a bride hugging somebody,” Schenker told CBS News. “You take photos because you have a moment you want to remember and so, they did all seem just special.”
That night, she imagined the loved ones behind the shutter and in front of it having those memories taken away from them forever, and the thought affected her deeply.
She decided to use Instagram to help reunite families with their missing photographs. Photos from Helene is a tearful page, as over two dozen photos have been returned. Often commenters recognize themselves or a loved one.
Schenker has found about 100 photos herself, but she’s also gathered many more from local search and rescue teams.
“Being able to have that moment where you hand something so special to somebody and then also just give them a hug—because they’ve lost likely their entire home in this situation—it’s such a privilege to have an insight into this moment in their lives through these photographs and be able to give them back to them,” she said.
Schenker says she will sometimes mail the photos to families if they’ve left the area, but if there’s an opportunity for a hand-delivery, she prefers that.
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