Local wrestling stars rally to support Helene recovery with AEW ‘Fight for the Fallen’

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — On the first day of 2025, Harrah’s Cherokee Center will be the home of All Elite Wrestling.

The worldwide entertainment program is bringing one of it’s biggest shows of the year to Western North Carolina. On top of that, it is going to help those still struggling after Helene.

AEW puts on Wednesday night Dynamite 52 weeks a year. However, some regulars haven’t been around as much recently.

“Just like everyone else, [Helene] was very scary,” said wrestler and Arden resident Dax Harwood. “My wife and I, we had to get a new roof. We had to remodel one of our rooms. My sister-in-law had two trees fall through her house. She still can’t live in the house now.”

“It looked like an invisible Godzilla was walking towards our house,” said wrestler and Asheville resident Adam Copeland. “The trees were just falling.”

For the last three months, Copeland and Harwood have spent more time in their community than in the ring.

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“I would drive from Charlotte back and forth to Asheville every day to bring supplies back,” Harwood said. “My boss made a call and sent thousands of smaller StarLinks to Asheville. It was so important for me, [Cash Wheeler], Adam Copeland, my wife and everyone else in between to help this community.”

“My brother-in-law and me found a way to Tennessee,” Copeland said. “We went up and got supplies and cans of things and brought it back. We just started delivering stuff. I think it’s just what you do as a human being. You try to help. There’s a human element to what we do. It’s still human beings behind these characters. It just so happens that three major characters on this show happen to live here.”

They helped in more ways than one.

“For Summit Coffee Co. in the River Arts District, those people went to bed and had a job,” Harwood said. “They woke up the next morning and then they didn’t. Everything was gone. I was able to take my wife and my daughter there. We formed a bond and a relationship there not just with each other, but also the baristas. They became part of our family.”

“Immediately after the storm, I thought we were going to shut down and not be able to recover,” Summit Coffee owner JT LaBruyere said Tuesday. “We refer to Dax as our number one fan. He didn’t really clarify, but he told me he was going to help and figure something out.”

“I suggested that we make a shirt,” Harwood said. “The royalties, which would be mine and my tag partner, would go to the baristas so they could have some income. Tony [Khan] suggested we do something better and say all the income.”

“The AEW crew stepping up and providing support is pretty awesome,” LaBruyere said. “Every little bit helps. It’s heart-warming to get that support when it’s unexpected.”

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Between the shirts and a GoFundMe, Adam, Dax and Old Fort’s Cash Wheeler raised over $70,000. A large portion of that number came from the world of wrestling.

“Initially, we wanted to raise around 5,000 dollars,” Harwood said. “Then it kept going up. Chris Jericho donated a ton of money. People from the WWE, who are our competitors, donated a ton of money. Tony Khan donated a ton of money. We donated that money to another GoFundMe that all the small business started together.”

AEW did not want its stars fighting this fight alone.

“We hadn’t originally scheduled this event,” AEW president and CEO Tony Khan said. “It was something we planned after we heard the terrible news. We wanted to help as AEW. That’s why we’re bringing such an important event.”

In late November, AEW announced that “Fight for the Fallen” was coming to Asheville.

“We’ll be coming to Asheville with our first ever simulcast event,” Khan explained. “It’s the most important show in our history for so many reasons. It’s going to be on TV and streaming. It’ll be on in over 150 countries. There’s going to be millions of people around the world that will watch this.”

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“Once we got word that the show was going to be here, we went: ‘Okay this is amazing,’” Copeland said. “This region really needs this. A lot of companies would do this show in Charlotte or Raleigh. Instead, this is happening at ground zero. This is an important show for this company. That was less important to the bottom line. We’re doing this here to try to help.”

“[Tony] could’ve said ‘Let’s go to Las Vegas, Atlanta, New York City,’” Harwood said. “We’re already seen by millions of people. Now, we’re going to be seen by millions more. If we used those platforms, we could get more recognition. This is what we set out to do. We had no idea it would be to this magnitude.”

Portions of ticket sales, merchandise and links throughout the broadcast will go towards local and national charities like MANNA FoodBank, Beloved Asheville and the Dream Center, among others.

“I’m sure it’ll be an emotional night,” Copeland said. “At least for the three of us. We’ve been here the entire time watching this community dig itself out. It’s a way to get away just for two to three hours and try to have fun.”

“This one show is ultimately not for myself, my partner, Tony Khan, or AEW,” Harwood said. “It’s for the people. Hopefully, we can bring a little bit of happiness, joy, and normalcy to the community.”

“We’re putting our best foot forward as a company, on the biggest stage for us, on the biggest night for us as a company. It’s going to be a great show and a great night,” Khan said.

Fight for the Fallen starts at 7:30 p.m. on New Year’s Day. For ticket information, click here.