In late September of last year, Tropical Storm Helene dumped up to 20 inches of water in parts of western North Carolina. In Ashe County, where Reverend Blake Smaar leads the congregation at West Jefferson United Methodist Church near Lansing, wind gusts reached up to 80 miles per hour. Smaar, whose wife was due in two weeks with their second child, spent the day pumping water out of his basement. He woke up the next…