HOPE Bus

Asheville, NC

On July 4, 2024, Linked4Life opened its HOPE Bus, bringing HOPE to all who

live in and visit Asheville.

The HOPE Bus is a reimagined former food truck of Bear's Smokehouse in the South Slope district at 135 Coxe Avenue. It is a place for people to share messages of hope and demonstrate their commitment to breaking the stigma of mental health.

Visitors can make a $3 donation and receive a Linked4Life blue carabiner - a metal clip that symbolizes the power of connection. The carabiner comes with a tag so you can write a message of hope to display in the HOPE Bus.

Open from NOON to 8 p.m. each day, the HOPE Bus has a mural by local artists, Gus Cutty and Kathryn Crawford, and a large illuminated HOPE sign created by metalworker David Earl tied to Linked4Life's commitment to promoting mental health.

HISTORY

The bus was originally opened as a food truck in November 2020 when the Bear's Smokehouse team was faced with the COVID-19 pandemic, and their plans to build a brick and mortar restaurant came to a screeching halt.

After two long years of persevering through many phases of construction, and less than ideal conditions for operating a food truck, Bear's Smokehouse BBQ restaurant was finally complete, and the truck was "retired".

Looking back, the bus gave the Bear's team HOPE in a time of extreme adversity. It was a vital reminder that despite the challenges and obstacles, they could reach their goal of having a beautiful restaurant and property that people from all over the world would come to love.

Now that their dream has become a reality, the team at Bear's has transformed their food truck to the Linked4Life HOPE Bus, to continue connecting people in HOPE in Asheville.