A Heroic Family: The Knafelzs

When their son Matthew, current student and member of the men’s basketball team, called his parents (Rick and Julie) to say he could fit eight teammates in his van and he was doing his best to head home to safety in Charlotte. At that moment, his mother, Julie Knafelz prayed the hardest she had in her life. As the team arrived, Julie, Rick and their family took the team into their home and cared for the students, including stragglers who showed up and needed a place to stay. Action through service became the mantra that they lived by, rallying with their local church to organize food and supply collections to take to Western NC.

 “We’ve done the recovery efforts, now it’s like, ‘alright, we need to start with the rebuilding,’. We’re not going anywhere and we’re going to help in any way we can.” —Julia Knafelz

---

Meet Molly McCane

When Molly Beth McCane's son Ben made Lees-McRae College his school of choice, Molly Beth and her family were all in to support Ben and be a part of the community.

"The caring faculty, administration and staff set Lees-McRae apart from other colleges. The setting of the campus, the community of Banner Elk, the historic buildings, and the beauty of the campus make the college unique."