Covering the McMurray Home Dedication in Taylor’s Valley, Virginia
As a professional photographer offering photojournalism throughout Southwest Virginia as one of my photography services that I offer, I’m always honored to document important moments in my community — and last week’s home dedication ceremony for Carl and Linda McMurray in Taylor’s Valley, Virginia, was one of those assignments.
On Tuesday, reporter Susan Cameron from Cardinal News contacted me about covering the event. The ceremony would celebrate the McMurrays’ brand-new home, built after their original house was destroyed during the catastrophic floods brought by Hurricane Helene last fall.
Carl and Linda McMurray’s story gained widespread attention at the end of September 2024 when Hurricane Helene’s floodwaters tore their home apart. Their house was carried almost two football fields downstream, splitting into two sections. I visited Taylor’s Valley immediately after the disaster and captured images showing one half of their home perched on higher ground, while the other half rested next to a newly formed cascade created by the flooding.
Linda and Carl’s home where it came to rest in two parts.
Linda was found in this portion of the McMurray home.
Both upstairs portions of the McMurray home can be seen.
Linda was found sitting in the sowing room of her home the following morning after Hurricane Helene struck Taylors Valley, VA.
Their survival remains nothing short of remarkable. As their home broke apart, Carl (gentleman to the right in the photograph above) was swept away by the fast-moving waters and spent hours clinging to a tree before being rescued by helicopter. Meanwhile, Linda was trapped alone on the second floor overnight and was rescued the next morning by neighbors, who carried her to safety in her rocking chair after 16 harrowing hours.
On Thursday afternoon, Susan met me at my home, and we traveled together to Taylor’s Valley to cover the home dedication event. We parked at Hellbender’s Café and rode a shuttle bus up the hill to the McMurrays’ newly constructed home, built just above the site where their old home once stood.
A large gathering of family, friends, town residents, media teams, and state officials filled the property to show support.
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin makes remarks during a home dedication ceremony for Carl & Linda McMurray.
The event began with remarks from the head of the Mennonite Disaster Services group, followed by a speech from Tony Miller with Trails to Recovery. Then, in an emotional moment, Carl and Linda McMurray were presented with the keys to their new home.
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin also attended the event, offering remarks about community resilience and the importance of disaster recovery efforts across Virginia. He then participated in a ribbon-cutting ceremony alongside the McMurrays.
After the formal ceremony, members of the media had the opportunity to speak with Governor Youngkin and the McMurrays. Linda then graciously gave Susan Cameron and myself and members of the Bristol Herald Courier, a personal tour of her and Carl’s beautiful new home. It will be a nice fresh start made possible by those that built their new home through the strength of volunteers and the support of their tight-knit community.
After returning home, I edited and delivered the images for Susan Cameron’s article, which you can read on Cardinal News here: [Cardinal News Story].
As a photojournalist working in Southwest Virginia, moments like this remind me why documenting local stories matters so much — not just capturing the events, but preserving the incredible resilience and spirit that define communities like Taylor’s Valley.
- Ben Earp