08/17/2025
First of all, for those who have followed the trauma of our situation with our home and the destruction of my business at The Village Potters by hurricane Helene, and supported us emotionally and financially, we can't possibly thank you enough!
Many of you are out of town and may be thinking that things are back to normal in Asheville now, but unfortunately that is not the case. The trauma and the grief is not over, but we are trying to work through it and in spite of it to rebuild what was an amazing fully operating clay center with multiple classroom areas, a full gallery and studios for 7 full-time resident potters. When the water came and took our facilities away, we had about 100 students a week and gallery customers and workshop students coming in from all over the country. It took 14 years to build a community that was a safe place for people of all backgrounds and walks of life. So, rebuilding this in one year, with your help, is truly miraculous. The value of what the Village Potters brings to the larger community of Western North Carolina is immeasurable.
So let me get right to it. I feel like we are in the final stages of Labor and delivery. We are ready for the last push but we are exhausted and we need your help. Yes, this is a bold ask for help. I'd like to share with you a quote from a book entitled "The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse". As they are walking on their journey, the boy asks the horse who is very wise, "what's the bravest thing you ever said?" After a long pause, the horse responds. " Help". (Then after another pause) "Asking for help isn't giving up, it's refusing to give up!"
Asking for help (especially financial) is very difficult for me, but that is why I'm writing to you. The costs to rebuild have been far more than we ever imagined. In some ways it's probably better that we didn't know how expensive it would be, or we may not have been so determined to rebuild. 😉 But we are almost there so we are asking for your help.
There are three ways you can help:
1. Make a donation of any amount either online or via check.
2. Purchase a ticket and come join us at our fundraising event on October 9th.
3. Become a sponsor through our new 501c3, The Village Potters Foundation. (There are four levels of sponsorship available.)
Please go to our website at
https://thevillagepotters.com/
to see how incredibly far we have come, and the details of how you can help us with this final push to rebuild and reopen! No gift is too small... And no gift is too large.☺️
I cannot effectively express my gratitude for anything you can do to help! If you live out of town, why not come see our beautiful mountains in the fall, come to our fundraising event on October 9th and our grand reopening celebration at our new space on October 11th! God bless you, and thank you for taking the time to read this email!
Love from the bottom of my heart,
Judi Harwood
Resident Potter and Instructor
The Village Potters
Asheville, NC
Home GREAT NEWS: We have a new facility! The Village Potters Clay Center at Westgate! Our new location is 44 Westgate Parkway Asheville 28806 SUBSCRIBE to our Newsletter for all the latest updates. Our Clay Company is still operating out of our temporary warehouse until our new facility opens this s...
