Thousands of women across the United States are preparing to do their part to show support for law enforcement and be “God’s Light in a dark world.”
Beautifully Designed, an online women’s ministry, will host their first ever community event at the national level with “Back the Blue.” The event, scheduled for Monday, Aug. 1, is encouraging members of the community to give back to police officers.
Ashley Shepherd, founder of Beautifully Designed, came up with the movement during a trip through Texas.
“I was actually in Dallas during the funeral procession for the officers that lost their lives in the line of duty,” Shepherd told the Elizabethton Star. “That’s when the idea came about. With all the negativity you see, we just want to be a positive for our local law enforcement and show that they are appreciated.”
Shepherd surely has the woman power to back up the movement. Beautifully Designed has over 16,000 that participate in Facebook Bible study services online.
“We have people committed in over 550 cities in all states,” Shepherd said. “Everybody has done their part to make sure this event can be a success.”
Tennessee will be represented for Monday’s event with 86 cities pledged to provide support for police officers, including the City of Elizabethton.
As far as Terra Dugger, a native of Elizabethton, was concerned, the opportunity to spearhead the charge in the area was an easy decision to make.
“I chose Elizabethton as it is the small town I grew up in,” she said. “There were not very many people supporting it in this area for the “Back in Blue” and I wanted to be part of this group.”
Shepherd added that she appreciated the effort Dugger has put into organizing the movement locally.
“I know Terra travels back and forth to Elizabethton and the city means a lot to her,” she said. “We’ve had such an incredible response from everyone in Tennessee.”
Dugger will be stationed at First United Methodist Church in downtown Elizabethton. She also thanked the church for letting her use the space for the event.
“Anybody can participate,” Shepherd said. “Whether it’s providing food to the law enforcement, having children do something as simple as write a card … we just want to show the men and women that protect each day that they are appreciated by their citizens. “
Along with the different individuals assisting Monday, Dugger added that Petsense is going to donate items for K-9 officers, including toys and treats.
Contact Dugger via email at terra.wolfe@yahoo.com to learn more information on Monday’s event or how to get involved.
Shepherd told the Elizabethton Star that the impending success for “Back the Blue” is credited to the thousands of Beautifully Designed members taking the initiative to work at the event.
For more information on Beautifully Designed, Shepherd encourages individuals to visit their website, beautifullydesigned.com, to learn more about the group.