Love Letters to Lost Places
As we reflect on the changes we have witnessed in WNC over the last seven months, we must also acknowledge some hard losses. The awful reality is that, despite our best efforts, not every beloved historic structure can be saved following a disaster. We do our best to salvage what we can, and preserve the memory of what these historic places mean to us. To this end, we will be featuring “Love Letters to Lost Places,” where community members can share their memories, and as a community we can begin to grieve for the places we were not able to save that we held so dear. This Love Letter was submitted by Melissa Bailey Logan, the President and CEO of YMCA Blued Ridge Assembly.
Dear Old Gym,
I am so grateful for you. I’m grateful that when Helene sent a deluge of rocks, debris, mud and water down the mountain, you stood tall with your steel beams and solid wood and took the brunt of the devastation. I’m grateful you saved other buildings from destruction, including your neighbor for over a century, Asheville Hall, which had over fifty people sheltering there. I’m grateful we had begun clearing out your lower floor, prepping you for a future restoration project, opening up space to take on those wind-topped trees and rocks pulled from the ground by the force of water from the incessant rainfall. Thank you for the sacrifice; what so many worked so hard to build at the beginning of the past century was destroyed in hours.
What really built you, and what can never be destroyed, was formed through years of serving people and the experiences you created for the youth, teens and families that visited this Mountain. Gymnasiums have always been an integral part of the YMCA experience and when Dr. Weatherford founded Blue Ridge Assembly, he made sure to have a place where guests could go workout, play basketball and improve their overall health – place where community, fellowship and laughter echoed. For some time, you even got to oversee swimming activities as our first pool was at your feet! You housed staff for a while, having them sign their names to your walls. You watched school children play in the shallow stream and find salamanders and other creatures. You were home to basketball, volleyball, dodgeball and even dances.
We tried to save you. A friend who’s a structural engineer looked at you and said, “Let’s give it a try.” You needed two 24’ steel beams to replace the 3 columns you lost in the storm and a wench strap to stabilize another column. Our contractor shored up what was left of your stone corner column and tried to brace your entire south wall. None of it was enough, you kept sagging and shifting.
In looking at you, we could see the toll the storm had taken, and it was time to say goodbye. It was such a heartbreaking day. Not just because you were historic, though that would be reason enough, but because you were a witness to the learning, the friendships, the laughter, the spiritual growth and the vigorous debate that occurred here in the last 100 years.
We didn’t want to let all of you go, so we salvaged pieces from you – the floor designed so perfectly for sport, the wall signed by staff, the beautiful wood siding – but the day you were demolished, a hole was left. And I’m not just talking about the land. So, from all of us, thank you for standing tall; thank you for what you were, what you witnessed and the memories you created.
With a sad yet grateful heart,
Melissa Bailey Logan
President & CEO
YMCA Blue Ridge Assembly
