NEWS BRIEFS

Goodwill gives a free car to an employee

As Goodwill donations attendant Shelley Pope started the engine, honked the horn and tested the radio of her “new” car, her daughter looked on, teary-eyed.

“It’s bittersweet,” Stephanie Ramsey said in a release. “I mean — it’s only bitter because Bobby can’t be here to see it. But I can’t think of anybody who deserves this car more than her.”

Bobby Jenkins was Pope’s boyfriend of the past two years. She had cared for him through many months of chronic illness, but his death on May 8 was unexpected. Stephanie said her mother had not had many reasons to smile in recent weeks, so the gift of a car came at a particularly good time.

Goodwill Industries of Middle Tennessee presented Pope with a used 1999 Lexus ES300 sedan through the nonprofit’s Wheels-to-Work program. Goodwill established the program in 2013 to provide vehicles given by Goodwill donors to Goodwill employees who need reliable transportation to get to work.

Goodwill’s Director of Donations Danny Rhodes brought the car to Pope while she was on the job at Goodwill’s Donation Express Center at 1414 W. Main St. in Lebanon.

Pope called her daughter to come and see the car, which looks new, thanks to body work and a fresh coat of gray paint partially donated by Maaco in Nashville.

“It’s absolutely gorgeous,” Pope said.

Pope has worked for Goodwill for six years, first as a lead retail associate and now as an attendant at the donation site in Lebanon. Prior to joining Goodwill in 2014, Pope was unemployed after working in a fast food position and other temporary jobs that came to an end.

In 2015, unfortunate circumstances led to Pope losing her home and most of her belongings. Since that time, Pope, who is now 48, has slowly rebuilt her life. She has an apartment but has been without transportation for three years.

Five days a week, Pope has walked about two miles — a 35-minute trip — from her apartment to her job. She also walked on all her personal errands, saving any extra money she might have had for Uber rides to take her boyfriend to the doctor.

Legal Aid Society Awarded $570,000 Grant Through Statewide Cycles of Success Program

Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands, Tennessee’s largest nonprofit law firm, has been awarded a $570,000 grant to help with multigenerational poverty.

The Two-Gen grant through the Cycles of Success program is a partnership between the Tennessee Department of Human Services and the Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services. It will allow Legal Aid Society attorneys to provide legal assistance and family advocacy for up to 75-100 families in Davidson, Scott and Morgan Counties.

It can be used for cases related to divorce, orders of protection, landlord-tenant disputes, affordable housing, transportation, consumer debt issues, tax disputes, public benefit issues and other services. “We’re so grateful to the State of Tennessee and TALS for involving us in this innovative program, which will enable Legal Aid Society to do a lot of important work we haven’t previously had the funding to do,” said DarKenya W. Waller, executive director of Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands. “We intend to do our part to help these families put their legal issues behind them and open the door to a brighter future.” TDHS initially piloted the Cycles of Success in 2016 in coordination with TALS and Memphis Area Legal Services to help low-income families in Shelby County with legal problems that were preventing them from becoming more self-sufficient.

Two-Generation Approach to lifting families out of poverty. The depart ment has awarded Two-Gen grants to 34 organizations and educational entities across the state that address the needs of parents and children at the same time. These grants are a key part of the department’s plan to invest surplus funds from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. “The Cycles of Success program has demonstrable proof of success and is a reason the Department continues to invest in the Two-Generation Approach,” said TDHS Commissioner Danielle W. Barnes. “We can build a thriving Tennessee when we ensure certain legal issues don’t create an unnecessary burden for families.”

The program was one of the earliest partnerships created through the TDHS

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints gives more than 120,000 pounds of food to Middle Tennessee food banks

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints delivered over 120,000 pounds of food to Middle Tennessee food banks, including One Generation, Graceworks, Nourish Food Bank and Manna Cafe Ministries.

One Generation Away received their donation of 27 pallets on May 13, just in time for mobile pantry operations. The 53-foot semi truck included much needed items such as flour, Canola oil, canned proteins and macaroni and cheese.

“We went from delivering 40 family meals a week for Williamson County schools, to packaging 450 a week. We have provided over 1 million pounds of food since the COVID-19 pandemic started,” said OGA Co-Founder Chris Whitney in a release.

The semi-truck hauling over $45,000 in shelf-stable foods arrived from Salt Lake City’s Welfare Square, an international humanitarian relief effort by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Food is produced by various Church-owned processing plants or sourced from farms, ensuring high-quality and nutritious foods for humanitarian relief organizations such as One Generation Away.

“We recognized the need to address hunger in our community during the COVID-19 crisis. Now more than ever, churches and organizations need to work together to provide stability and life-saving resources to our community,” says Nashville Stake President David Watson of The Church of Jesus Christ. “We will continue to seek out opportunities to serve and strengthen those around us.”