The Hope House of Cocke County was recently awarded a grant from the Neighbor to Neighbor Disaster Relief Fund from the East Tennessee Foundation.
Established in 1986, the East Tennessee Foundation serves 25 counties in East Tennessee and has granted over $330 million since its inception. They have a goal to provide philanthropic leadership inspiring donors to make lives better and communities stronger in enduring ways across generations. The ETF’s role is threefold: receive contributions from donors, manage and invest assets, and give well-placed grants and scholarships. This well-established and respected foundation has chosen The Hope House of Cocke County as a grant recipient, and we are deeply grateful. Let’s talk about what this grant has allowed us to do:
Receiving the ETF’s Neighbor to Neighbor Disaster Relief Fund Grant has been an excellent opportunity for The Hope House of Cocke County, as the grant is earmarked directly for the Free Little Food Pantries located in several locations within Cocke County:
Tastebudz (across from Empower Cocke County)
Beside Hilltop Baptist Church’s fellowship hall
Newport Family Dentistry
Centerview Volunteer Fire Department
Parrottsville City Hall
We used the first portion of the grant to purchase food for the Little Food Pantries. All of the boxes were completely filled for under $500, and we even had some extra food to top the boxes off a few days later.
But we need your help!
These boxes are in consistent use by members of our community who need them. Folks are truly taking what they need and leaving the rest. No one is clearing out complete pantries at once. There is just this much need in our community.
And this is why we ask for community support.
Proverbs 22:9
Whoever has a bountiful eye will be blessed, for he shares his bread with the poor.
Good examples of non-perishable food items for the pantries include:
Water
Granola bars
Canned vegetables
Canned fruit
Ramen
Packet or canned tuna
Canned chicken
Canned soups
Oatmeal packets
Macaroni and cheese
We used $600 of the grant to create some lovely toiletry kits which we distributed among all the pantry boxes. The kits included socks, bandaids, lotion, toothbrushes, toothpaste, chapstick, feminine hygiene products, floss, antibacterial wipes, Kleenex, soap, deodorant, and more. The grant from the East Tennessee Foundation allowed us to put together these toiletry kits for the first time. Our focus has always been to provide food in the boxes, but grant funds gave us the ability to put focus on other necessities.
The food pantries have been an incredible source of support for members of our community who need them. The Hope House has been fortunate to continue to use about $150 each week to ensure the Little Food Pantries stay stocked, but our grant money is quickly running out. We are asking for support from our community to keep these boxes full, and to help our neighbors who may be struggling.
If you would like to donate to the Hope House of Cocke County to help us continue serving our community, and to help us reach our goal of building a homeless shelter, we hope you will consider donating to the Hope House of Cocke County by check or PayPal Friends and Family.
Checks can be made payable to “Hope House of Cocke County” and mailed to:
PO Box 1019
Newport, TN 37822
For PayPal, our username is:
Comments