Enrique & Susan Herrera

Enrique and Susan Herrera, with their son

On July 6, 2025, the Longleaf Golf Club Dam (identified by the state as MOORE 008) catastrophically failed, sending seven feet of water across the Herrera family’s Pinehurst property and five feet into their home at 20 to 30 miles per hour. Enrique, his wife Susan, and her father Harry were in the basement when the surge burst through a slider door, and the family narrowly escaped as furniture and debris were forced down the hallway toward them. The flood destroyed the home’s entire lower level and buried nearly 40 years of irreplaceable military memorabilia, photographs, and keepsakes in mud. The dam had been rated a hazard in poor condition by the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality since 2011, yet critical repairs were never compelled. Because the home sat outside any mapped flood zone, the Herreras carried no flood insurance, and Susan suffered lasting injuries during the escape that aggravated a prior cervical fusion, ultimately forcing her to leave her job.

With rebuilding estimates approaching $451,000 and insurance and legal proceedings still unresolved, the Herrera family found themselves tens of thousands of dollars out of pocket for basic repairs, safety mitigation, and medical and caregiving costs. The Untold Journey Foundation stepped in with a substantial direct financial support, helping close the gap left by insurance delays and cover urgent expenses the family could not otherwise absorb. That support gave Enrique, Susan, and Harry room to focus on recovery, caregiving, and rebuilding their home rather than facing these costs alone.