Asheville Bed & Breakfast recovery after Hurricane Helene

We are Steve and Karen Wilson, the innkeepers and owners of The Lion and the Rose Bed & Breakfast in the historic Montford district of Asheville, North Carolina. Built in 1898, our Queen Anne/Georgian-style inn evokes the classic architecture of the times with original leaded and stained-glass windows, period antiques, four fireplaces, and a golden tiger oak foyer and staircase. It is the oldest and longest running bed and breakfast in Montford, established in 1985, and we were honored to take over this legacy 6 years ago.

After Hurricane Helene, we are blessed to be safe, along with our inn dogs, Ozzy and Lita. Right after the Hurricane happened we worked to set up the "Healing After Helene" online music and book benefit through Big Blend Radio, to share the needs of our greater southeast communities that were devastated by the hurricane, and to promote the website links for donations and support, and share positive and supportive messages from authors, musicians, and even therapists, from across the country and around the world. We also took our "Adventures in Asheville" podcast from monthly to weekly to keep the message out there and to share updates from our tourism and non-profit partners.

What we didn't know, was that it would be our turn to ask for help.

Unfortunately, Hurricane Helene hit our property harder than we initially thought. The recent inspections show that the damage is more extensive, and expensive. Four leaning trees have been removed from the side of the house. One of our five guest rooms and one of our parlors have been damaged.

We are not only a small family-owned business but this is also our home. We live in the basement which has the worst damage, and on top of it all, we lost most of our personal belongings. It is now in the process of being completely gutted and cleaned. Our quarters will need to be rebuilt and refurnished to be livable again.

Since September 27, we have lost our income through our peak season and have had to process a significant amount of refunds. Because of the amount of restoration needed to be done to our historic property, we are now uncertain of a reopening date. We need to make sure all repairs are done properly, and that the property is safe for our guests.

We kindly ask for any help so that we can get the repairs and restoration done. We want to reopen our business as soon as possible and we can't wait to fill the house with laughter, happiness, and smiling faces. Please consider purchasing a gift certificate on our site https://www.lion-rose.com/, supporting us here, or even sharing this on social media. Gift certificates and donations will help to repair and restore our beautiful pink lady.

From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you for your generous support!