Partner Agency

Kate had suffered from an abusive relationship for years when she finally escaped her abuser and found an apartment of her own. Kate was very careful to try and make sure her abuser couldn’t find her, but eventually, he did. He broke into her new apartment, assaulted her, and caused a large amount of property damage. Following this incident, Kate’s apartment complex ordered her evicted from her home. Kate couldn’t afford to get a lawyer, but fortunately, she heard about Legal Aid of East Tennessee and turned to them for help. Legal Aid took Kate’s case and, based on the Violence Against Women Act and Fair Housing violations, they were able to prevent her eviction. Kate then had time to find new housing where her abuser could not find her and she finally felt safe. Through Legal Aid’s pro-bono work with Kate, she was able to find safety and stability that she didn’t dream of before.

United Way of Greater Knoxville is proud to partner with an agency that defends and upholds Knoxvillians’ rights, even when they can’t afford legal defence themselves. Everyone in our community has inherent rights, and Legal Aid of East Tennessee is dedicated to upholding them. Change doesn’t happen alone. To live better, we must LIVE UNITED.

Autumn had been dealt a rough hand in life. She was abused as a child, and as a result struggled mightily with depression. Coupled with Attention Deficit Disorder, Autumn’s struggles caused her to lash out and she was eventually arrested for disorderly conduct and wound up in Juvenile Court. Her probation officer wanted Autumn to have a brighter future than her past, so he referred her to the Knoxville Leadership Foundation and recommended she participate in their KnoxWorx program. The program offers education and employment training, as well as mentorship and a deeply supportive community. Autumn was matched with her mentor, Allie, and things began looking up.

Over time, Autumn and Allie developed mutual trust and a strong friendship. They spent a lot of time hanging out and working together, and Allie proved to be the positive role model that Autumn so desperately needed. During their time together, Autumn and Allie worked to improve Autumn’s grades and figure out what she wanted her future to look like. Autumn decided she wanted to go into healthcare, so Allie and KnoxWorx arranged for her to receive a stipend and tuition help that allowed her to enroll in a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) program. Autumn completed the program with flying colors, and is now a full-time CNA with her own car and apartment.

United Way of Greater Knoxville is so grateful to be able to support an agency that offers such impactful programs in our community. The Knoxville Leadership Foundation offers people the opportunity to improve themselves and their station in life, and go after dreams they never thought possible. These programs change lives, but change doesn’t happen alone. To live better, we must LIVE UNITED.

For most of her professional career, Sandy had served in receptionist roles and others like it that only required minimal computer skills. Though she enjoyed her job, Sandy wanted to move up in her company and make more money to support her family- that’s when she became involved in the Workforce Development program offered by the Knoxville Area Urban League.

In the program, Sandy joined a computer class to advance her skills and make her eligible for higher employment. She stuck with the class, worked hard, and learned a lot of very valuable computer skills. As a result, Sandy reached her goal of becoming more computer-savvy, and was able to apply for jobs that were previously out of reach- all thanks to her involvement with the Knoxville Area Urban League.

United Way of Greater Knoxville is proud to partner with an agency that’s dedicated to educating and supporting the hard-working people of Knoxville. The Knoxville Area Urban League offers many programs that help the people in our community work towards their dreams and take advantage of opportunities they may not have had previously. Change doesn’t happen alone. To live better, we must LIVE UNITED.

The following is a testimony given from a Boys & Girls Club volunteer about their programs dedicated to feeding hungry kids:

“One of the things Boys & Girls Clubs of the Tennessee Valley is most proud of is being able to feed the Club youth we serve, including the summer breakfast meals we have been able to provide youth who attend Club sites located within public housing facilities. The summer breakfast program is very appreciated and well-received amongst Club youth, as well as parents and guardians of Club members. The program features many different choices: some days, cold items such as fruits, yogurts and cereals are offered, with yogurt parfaits being a favorite among the children. Other days, easy-to-prepare hot foods such as pancakes, sausage and eggs were provided (staff and children at these Club sites love to cook together through cooking Clubs). Further, non-traditional fruit items, such as kiwi, were introduced to Club youth. We also have contracted providers develop summer breakfast menus (ensuring the meals are nutritious) and deliver the meals to the Club. Finally, juice or milk was served with each meal.

Just the summer breakfast meals program at our four Knox County Club sites provided 200 students breakfast daily for 40 days throughout the summer program. The program became so popular that there was a huge increase in Club attendance, as Club youth were showing up just to be able to eat a well-balanced breakfast at the Club- likely because they did not have food at home. Parents were very appreciative of these meals being offered to Club youth, Club youth were enthusiastic about the food provided to them, and Club staff noticed improved attentiveness and positive behavior throughout the day from those who had come early to eat breakfast at the Club during the summer.”

United Way of Greater Knoxville is extremely proud to partner with the Boys & Girls Club of the Tennessee Valley; not only do they offer valuable physical and intellectual programs to the kids in our community, but they’re dedicated to making sure that no child goes hungry- especially during the summer, when school-provided food is unavailable. Steady, nutritious meals are imperative to children’s development, and we are more than happy to help provide healthy food to Knoxville kids. Change doesn’t happen alone. To live better, we must LIVE UNITED.

In May 2016, the Pellissippi State Community College Pantry began in offering service to their students, faculty, and any family members in need through Second Harvest’s School Pantry program.  They started with 19 students enrolled from 2 of their 5 campuses, and they are currently serving 35 students from 4 out of their 5 campuses. This story came from an AmeriCorp/VISTA representative serving at the Pellissippi State Community College:

“The Pantry is going great. We are growing weekly with new participants and the college president is already keeping an eye out for us to move into a larger space once something is available. That may be awhile down the road, but it’s awesome knowing that administration is so on board with helping us.

We have grown to 4 out of 5 campuses so far with participants and deliveries. I am expecting the 5th campus to come online soon. We have also created a couple of partners in Knoxville that are helping us augment the orders with fresh organic produce from their gardens as well as our own. This has made a HUGE impact on the types of fresh vegetables we can bring to the students. Not to mention that any left over produce is left out for our students, faculty, and staff as they come by and find a “treat” during the day. It has proven to be quite the comedy watching people hover in anticipation, waiting for the extra produce to be left.”

United Way of Greater Knoxville is proud to support programs that not only offer free food to those in need, but healthy, nutritious, organic food to those in need. So often, individuals suffering from food insecurity sacrifice health in order to put food on the table. Second Harvest does excellent work to provide healthy food to the hungry in our community. Change doesn’t happen alone. To live better, we must LIVE UNITED.