Holston Home for Children sets special fundraiser dinner
Published 9:24 am Tuesday, September 6, 2016
Next month, a special dinner will be held for Holston United Methodist Home for Children, which has been serving families of East Tennessee and Southwest Virginia for more than a century.
This special Friends of Children fundraiser dinner will take place on Thursday, Oct. 6, at the Meadowview Convention Center starting at 6:30 p.m. East Tennessee State University President Dr. Brian Noland will be the guest speaker for the event.
“We are looking forward to hearing from Brian Noland this year,” said Mary Margaret Denton, a long-time board member at Holston Home. “Dr. Noland and Holston Home share a passion for the education, development, and growth of young people in this region.”
Proceeds from the event will go directly to benefit Holston Home, which has been providing a variety of services to families across the region for more than 120 years.
Holston Home was founded in 1895 by Mrs. E.E. Wiley, a widow, when she took in her first homeless child. Since that first child was taken in, Holston Home has now helped more than 8,000 children across the region.
Holston Home is located in Greeneville and has service locations in Johnson City, Knoxville, and Chattanooga in Tennessee as well as a family service center in Bristol, Va. According to the organization’s website “the goal of Holston Home is to help children and families overcome hardships in their lives.”
To that end, Holston Home provides a variety of services and programs to assist families, including foster care, group care, adoption services, education, Christian life programs and early childhood ministry.
In announcing the event, Bradley Williams, the president of Holston Home, shared the story of one of the children the ministry has helped recently, a young girl named Maria.
Maria came to Holston Home when her mother could no longer care for her because of her drug addiction, Williams said. During Maria’s time at Holston Home, not only was Maria served by the program, but her mother also received the help she needed to remain drug free and secure housing for her family. Maria was able to return home because of the programs of Holston Home that helped her and her mother.
“Last year, Holston Home touched the lives of almost 700 children and youth,” Williams said. “By supporting our Friends of Children events you are giving children, like Maria, hope for a brighter future.”
Seating for the Friends of Children dinner is limited and reservations must be made in advance.
For more information on the event or to reserve your seats, please contact Nicole Rader at Holston Home (423) 787-8753 or email nicolerader@holstonhome.org.