Restoration House staff didn’t hesitate when they found a familiar woman suffering from a panic attack, lying face-down in the dirt. Once Dedey Mathis was safely inside their vehicle, they drove off in search of help.
Seizures render Mathis unable to drive, so she walks nearly everywhere. Restoration House Executive Director Amy Dodson and case manager Pattie Ivey give her a ride when she can’t reach her destination on foot. Because of that small, nondescript white building on Academy Street in downtown Bryson City, she can also take warm showers, access her prescriptions and restock her cabinet. Restoration House is a lifeline to Mathis — and to hundreds just like her throughout Swain County.