Chestnut School's Herbal Relief Fund

How you can help

We are asking for support in two key ways:

1. Donations to our GoFundMe

Any amount is deeply appreciated! Your contributions will help with:

• • Securing a storage facility to receive, process, and organize donations.
  • Purchasing dispensing supplies (labels, bottles, packaging, etc.).
  • Labor costs for coordinating the distribution of donations to mutual aid organizations and small herbal businesses in Appalachia impacted by Hurricane Helene.
  • Juliet’s former apprentice, Annie, will lead this project. She has over a decade of experience in emergency medicine and mutual aid.
  • Rebuilding Chestnut School’s apothecary and library and supporting other local herbal businesses affected by the storm. (Please contact us if you were affected, and we will add you to the list!)

2. Physical Donations of Herbs and Herbal Preparations

We need to limit our intake to the freshest, most potent medicine. Please note the following requirements:

Categories of herbs that are needed most (with examples):

• • Alteratives: nettles, red clover, milk thistle, burdock, dandelion, gotu kola, yellow dock
  • Nervines: milky oats***, tulsi (holy basil), chamomile, lemon balm, lavender, valerian, skullcap, rose, mimosa, linden, motherwort, passionflower, vervain
  • Adaptogens: ashwagandha, eleuthero, tulsi (holy basil), jiaogulan, reishi, rhodiola, schisandra
  • Immune support: echinacea, spilanthes, astragalus, medicinal mushrooms, Japanese honeysuckle, usnea, calendula, elderberry, elder flower

Herbal preparations:

• • Dried Herbs: They must be less than one year old and have the name, plant part, and location where they were grown or gathered. If purchased, please include the supplier’s information.
  • Tinctures: They must be alcohol-based and clearly labeled with weight-to-volume ratios and alcohol percentages. Please send only tinctures in dispensing bottles—no mason jars. Wrap these in protective cushioning so they won’t break and spill.
  • Infused Vinegars and Glycerites: They must be less than one year old in dispensing bottles and clearly labeled with ingredients and other details as outlined above. Helpful to have for those who avoid alcohol.
  • Infused Oils: They must be less than one year old and in dispensing bottles. Please label with the same details as above.
  • Salves: Must be less than one year old and ready for distribution. Please include all pertinent information as outlined above.
  • Small Bottles from Herbal Companies: These must have been bottled within the last year. We will share these directly with impacted individuals.
  • Essential Oils: Unopened bottles only, protectively wrapped.

If you have any questions about medicine you would like to donate, please email info@chestnutherbs.com.

Juliet is especially interested in restocking her Southwestern and Rocky Mountain medicine! If you have been a student of Michael Moore or 7Song, you likely know just what she wants.

**UPDATED REQUEST LIST (11/1/24)**

• St John’s Wort oil or salve
• Muscle Salves – Arnica, Cayenne, Menthol, etc.
• Rose glycerites
• Non-alcoholic nervine glycerites
• Mushroom extracts
• Raw honey for wound care
• Immune stimulants and anti-bacterial herbs
• Digestive bitters
• Fire cider
• Nervine/Sleep tea blends

Herbal Relief Fund Updates
(11/1/24)

We are pleased to share an update on our Herbal Relief Fund, which has reached an impressive $76,000 (both through our GoFundMe campaign and our recent enrollment fundraiser) thanks to your generous contributions.

This support has enabled us to assist small businesses impacted by Hurricane Helene including:

We’ve also been able to fund six first aid projects (both mobile and stationary clinics) in some of the hardest-hit areas of Buncombe, Madison, Yancey, and Mitchell Counties. These pop-up clinics and grassroots initiatives are particularly effective in reaching affected communities, as the volunteers are local residents who have already established trust and rapport with those they serve.

As we move forward, we remain committed to providing further assistance where it is most needed in the coming weeks.