New Members come on Board
By | December 18, 2009
October saw the induction of five new board members, which brings our board to capacity at 12 members. Rafael Lastra, Coleman Foss, Don Goff, Beth Bird, and Bob Hardin all began their three year term October 2, 2009. Each new member brings a unique perspective and heartfelt desire to serve the needy of Bradley County.
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Three Long-Term Board Members Rotate Off
By | October 13, 2009
At the September board meeting for The Caring Place the staff had the opportunity to say thank you to three long-term board members for their service. Rev. Randy Bonner, Dr. Henry Smith, and Dr. Rick Denning have served The Caring Place as board members for many years. Dr. Smith has served as Chairman of the board for the last two years.
Dr. Henry Smith, Rev. Randy Bonner and Dr. Rick Denning
Rev. Bonner who currently serves at the Bradley Baptist Association as a regional missionary for the North American Mission Board, has a deep respect for the poverty he has seen in Cleveland and Bradley County. Working through Ocoee Outreach, he has seen first hand the affect of poverty in the southeast area of the county. Rev. Bonner served on The Caring Place Board for more than 9 years.
Dr. Henry Smith is currently retired from the pastorate but is teaching at Lee University. Dr. Smith has worked along side Westmore Church of God for many years addressing the needs of the people of Cleveland. He has worked tirelessly promoting The Caring Place and provided priceless support for the staff as board chairman. Dr. Smith also has served on the board for more than 9 years.
Dr. Rick Denning, the Cleveland City Schools Superintendent, understands how poverty and need affects families. His position with the school system has given him a unique insight into Cleveland’s needy. Dr. Denning has served on the board since December 2005 and has been instrumental in promoting community awareness.
The staff of The Caring Place will miss these three gentlemen but know that they carry the mission of The Caring Place into their daily lives.
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Second Annual Fundraiser for The Caring Place October 29th
By | September 8, 2009
Mark your calendars, The Caring Place will hold its Second Annual fundraiser at The Museum Center at 5ive Points on October 29th. This event will be catered and the Emcee for the night will be Steve Hartline. Pat Price and Scott Price, authors of “Looking for Goodwill”, are the the nights special guest speakers.
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How is The Caring Place different from other social service agencies?
By jjones | July 28, 2009
There are many social services agencies in Bradley County, what makes The Caring Place unique?
That is an interesting question and has an equally interesting answer. The Caring Place began as an endeavor of four churches to meet a need more effectively by pooling their resources. After several years, this initial idea of joining together to help more has grown to 52 churches of 12 denominations and more than 100 local business. Yet this is not all that makes The Caring Place unique.
It is the feeling you get when you walk in the doors. There is an attitude of gratitude at The Caring Place. This atmosphere of caring is created by the volunteers who serve each day. Every morning is began by a time of staff-led devotion. This 30 minutes is dedicated to sharing from God’s word an encouraging or challenging message. There is also time for sharing personal burdens and praying for each other. Each devotional time is ended with prayer for the volunteers and for the clients. Devotions are a daily reminder for the staff and volunteers of the true focus of The Caring Place, meeting needs with Christ’s love.
Volunteers who care enough to serve with prayer, that is what makes The Caring Place different.
Beginning a day with staff led devotions
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April Showers, May Flowers?
By | May 20, 2009
“Rain, Rain Go Away. Come Again Another Day“
The Drought is over according to our local weather forecasters. After such a long period with out rain it almost feels mean spirited to wish it would stop. Waking up with the rain, working in the rain, watching clients get soaked as they came to register for food. Unlike the drought, hunger and need did not stop with the rain.
March was incredibly busy. We saw a 47% increase year to date over the previous year and we are in an economic slow-down. The best surprise was witnessing the faithfulness of God. The Caring Place was blessed by individual’s, churches, businesses, and several organizations with donations of clothing and food. We met this increase of need through God’s wonderful blessings.
April was not quite as busy as March but we continued to see the trend of more than 1,000 bags of food given away. In fact, The Caring Place has not fallen below 1,000 bags per month since July 2008. Our many volunteers worked very hard to pack food bags, sort and hang clothing, and to reach out in love to each consumer.
May began with a rush of need. Many families are coming to The Caring Place for the first time. It is an awesome responsibility given by God to be His servants to hurting people. Remeber The Caring Place with your prayers and donations.
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Volunteer night at the Chattanooga Lookouts
By | April 22, 2009
Several volunteers from The Caring Place enjoyed a night of baseball and fun April 18th. Volunteer Manager, Angela Malone organized a group outing to the volunteer night at the Lookouts. In addition to watching the Lookouts and the Montgomery Biscuts, volunteers were treated to the antics of the Zooperstars from America’s got Talent tv show.
If you are interested in becoming a volunteer at The Caring Place please contact Angela at 423-472-4414.
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Training News
By | March 17, 2009
The Caring Place recently held our first annual training event. All active volunteers from various jobs came and updated their skills. Questions, games, and meeting new people gave the day a festive feel. The Caring Place staff came in fatigues but with great smiles for the commitment shown by our volunteers.
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Ocoee Middle School and the Empty Bowl Project
By jjones | February 13, 2009
Empty Bowl Projec
On Jan. 22, Ocoee Middle School art teacher Amanda Duncan and the OMS Art Club, Art I and Art II classes presented a check for $860 to The Caring Place. The art students made 68 ceramic soup bowls in class and then held a soup night where they charged $20 per family to attend. The families kept the handmade bowls after the event and all donated money went to The Caring Place.
Ms. Duncan got the idea from the Empty Bowl Project, which is an international effort to fight hunger. For more information about the Empty Bowl Project click on this link: http://www.emptybowls.net/EmptyBowlsProject.htm
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Cooke’s Food Stores
By jjones | December 16, 2008
Cooke's Food Store
Cooke’s Food Stores have partnered with The Caring Place since 2006. Their initial involvement was utilizing their employees to assemble bags of food for purchase. Customers are encouraged to buy these bags of non-perishable food items for $5 and then place them in The Caring Place’s barrel in the store’s front lobby. Cooke’s next level of involvement was allowing their Operations Manager, Tom Harris, to become a member of The Caring Place’s Board of Directors. Harris takes his role seriously and has proven to be an incredible asset to The Caring Place. Cooke’s recently increased their involvement by donating a total of eight pallets of food from their stores on Keith Street, Springplace and Georgetown Roads.
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Model Train Show November 8,9,15th, and 16th
By jjones | October 24, 2008
You are invited to a Model Train Show at 2020 Glenwood Drive, NW
(between Georgetown Road and 20th street) benefitting The Caring Place.
Admission is free, however a donation of non-perishable food items
or a monetary donation for The Caring Place would be appreciated.
Children of all ages are welcome.
For Groups, Please call for an appointment 423-479-1081.
The shows are:
- Saturday, November 8, 2008 from 1-5pm
- Sunday, November 9 from 2-4pm
- Saturday, November 15th 1-5pm
- Sunday, November 16th 2-4pm
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