Children’s Choir Opens Trails and Trilliums on April 15

Friends of South Cumberland Announce Tribute Award Winner

The Friends of South Cumberland State Park has announced that the South Cumberland Community Fund will be honored with its Tribute Award at the 2016 Trails and Trilliums Festival, April 15–17 at the Monteagle Sunday School Assembly.

For two years, the Childrens’ Choir performance at Trails and Trilliums has been made possible by a grant from the South Cumberland Community Fund (SCCF) through the Paul S. McConnell Music Trust, which was established to encourage and support music on the Plateau.

“The generous support of the South Cumberland Community Fund has brought a treasure to Trails and Trilliums in the form of a gathering of students from across the Plateau participating in the Children’s Choir. The public support of this event has been resounding,” said Mary Priestley, representing the awards committee for Friends of the South Cumberland. “FSC is recognizing the Community Fund for all that they have done and are doing for the quality of life on our Mountain.”

This year’s Tribute Award will be presented at the Children’s Choir Concert and Student Art Exhibition at 5:30 p.m., Friday, April 15, in the Assembly Auditorium. The concert and exhibition are free to the public.

“The South Cumberland Community Fund is honored to receive this award,” said Margaret C. Woods, board chair of SCCF. “It has been a delight to see the Children’s Choir have such a positive impact and bring together so many people on the Mountain.”

The Trails and Trilliums Tribute Award, established in 2009, goes to an organization or person who has contributed to the South Cumberland Plateau or the FSC in a memorable way. Previous winners include: the Land Trust for Tennessee, Park Rangers of the South Cumberland State Park, contributors to “Williams Wildflowers,” Landscape Analysis Lab; Tennessee Naturalist Program Board; University of the South; and Discover Together . 

For the complete schedule for the weekend, more information or registration go to <www.trailsandtrilliums.org>.

Winners Named in Make A Difference Contest

Four projects from students in grades K–12 have been selected as winners in the South Cumberland Community Fund’s first Make a Difference contest.

The winning projects are: grades K–4—Fruit Tree Orchard; grades 5–8 (tie)—Coalmont Community Garden and Little Free Libraries; and grades 9–12: Advertising Fiery Gizzard’s Reroute. For fuller descriptions of the winning projects, go to <southcumberlandcommunityfund.org/difference/>.

“We want to say thank you to all of the youth of the South Cumberland Plateau who submitted their ideas for making their communities better, and to everyone in the community who participated by voting. The Community Fund looks forward to working with the four winning groups to make their ideas happen,” said Margaret Woods, SCCF board chair.

The South Cumberland Community Fund cultivates resources and leadership across the South Cumberland Plateau, offering direct grant funding and capacity-building initiatives to area nonprofits. For more information about SCCF, go to <southcumberlandcommunityfund.org> or email <laura@south​cumberlandcommunityfund.org>.

South Cumberland Community Fund Names Executive Director

The South Cumberland Community Fund, which works to improve the quality of life on the Plateau, has named Laura L. Willis as its first executive director, effective Nov. 1. Willis brings 30 years of experience in nonprofits and community organizing to the position.

“We are delighted that the Fund has matured to the point where we need and want professional leadership,” said Margaret C. Woods, board chair of the Fund. “Laura shares our dedication to supporting and encouraging the many wonderful things happening on our Mountain.” Willis begins work on a half-time basis next month.

The South Cumberland Community Fund works to improve the quality of life across the Plateau by increasing philanthropy and supporting leadership of the area’s communities, schools and nonprofit organizations. Established in 2012, SCCF has reinvested $520,000 in projects that benefit the tri-county area; it will make another round of grants in 2016. 

Willis’ hiring comes as the Fund builds on its successes and moves forward to implement the board’s plan of strategic growth in community development support, fund raising and endowment expansion, and capacity-building for area organizations. 

“Philanthropy is about caring for others, and Laura knows how to do that,” said Howell Adams, chairman emeritus of the SCCF board. “Madeline and I are very optimistic about the future of the Community Fund and know that it is in good hands.” 

Willis has lived on the Plateau for more than 24 years, serving the community in a variety of roles. She has been the editor and co-publisher of the Sewanee Mountain Messenger since 2010. For 10 years, she was the director of the Community Action Committee, the outreach program in Sewanee. Before moving to Sewanee in 1991, she was the grants manager of a private foundation and helped found an environmental group in Washington, D.C. She will continue to edit the Messenger until she transitions to full-time at SCCF in June.

“I am very excited to be joining the Community Fund at this vital point in its development,” said Willis. “My life’s passion and focus has been on creating positive change and developing new programs. SCCF is already an invaluable part of our community, and I look forward to the Fund’s next undertakings.”

SCCF will open an office at 322 West Main St., Monteagle, in early November. “We appreciate Morton Memorial Methodist Church’s generous sharing of their space with us,” Woods said.

“I saw Chattanooga turn around completely in the last 30 years,” said Jack Murrah, of Monteagle. “Community funds and foundations played a big role in that process. I believe we can do the same thing here on the Plateau,” said Murrah, who serves as an advisor to the South Cumberland Community Fund.

Scott Parrish, former chair of the SCCF board, said, “The Community Fund has a vision for the Plateau as a place of hope and prosperity for all residents and communities. We can feel that sense of hope and relative prosperity growing around the Plateau, from Beersheba to Sewanee and Pelham to Palmer. Hiring an executive director is the next step in the Fund’s evolution.”

SCCF’s Make A Difference project invited area schoolchildren to present their ideas about how to improve their community; voting for the finalists is going on now at <southcumberlandcommunityfund.org/difference>.

For more information about SCCF, go to <southcumberlandcommunityfund.org> or email <laura@southcumberlandcommunityfund.org>.

VISTA Program Announces 2015–16 Team

Five new volunteers are joining three continuing members for the second year of the South Cumberland Americorps VISTA Program.

“The first-year team of VISTA volunteers can be proud of what they accomplished in partnership with community organizations all across this area. We think this new team will build on those successes by continuing to build community, organizational and leadership capacity here on the Plateau,” said Jim Peterman, director of community engagement at the University of the South, which is the organizational home for the VISTA program. 

The volunteers (who include four Sewanee graduates) and their assignments in the community are Elaine Babb Taylor, C’15, community ambassador coordinator, Discover Together; Jennifer Horton, C’15, communication and assessment coordinator, Mountain T.O.P.; Spike Hosch, C ’12, economic development coordinator, Babson Center; Erica Teasley, C’11, economic development coordinator, Grundy County Mayor’s Office; 

Kelly Farina, healthy living coordinator, Sewanee Dining; McKenzie Liegel, school health activities coordinator, Grundy County Health Council; Bobby Luffman, health network coordinator with Grundy County Health Council; and Hilda Vaughan, grant writing and nonprofit management coordinator with South Cumberland Community Fund.

In 2014–15 the VISTA program members organized and implemented mobile food pantries, partnered with USDA to develop a summer meal program, secured funding for school garden projects and health activities in schools, created a local weatherization network, and researched and developed best practices for community ambassador, work force and economic development programs.

The VISTA program, a collaboration between the South Cumberland Community Fund, the University, and community partners, has started programs on the South Cumberland Plateau to address community-identified needs and pressing issues such as food security, education and economic development. By partnering with the VISTA program, local nonprofit groups are leveraging their resources to provide better outcomes for themselves and the clients they serve.

VISTA is the national service program designed specifically to fight poverty. Authorized in 1964 and founded as Volunteers in Service to America in 1965, VISTA was incorporated into the AmeriCorps network of programs in 1993. VISTA has been on the forefront of ending poverty in America for 50 years.

For more information, visit <www.southcumberlandcommunityfund.org/capacity-building> or contact Nicky Hamilton, VISTA director, at <nhamilto@sewanee.edu>.

Civic Assn. Approves Elliott Park Agreement

$21,000 Remains to be Raised before Sept. 30

by Leslie Lytle, Messenger Staff Writer

At the special called meeting on Aug. 26, the Sewanee Civic Association (SCA) overwhelmingly voted to approve the memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the Civic Association and the University of the South for the Elliott Park playground. Recognizing the need for renovation of the Elliott Park playground, the Civic Association Parks Committee identified the project as a community priority in early 2013. The park, which had a long history of community support, had fallen into disrepair.

Located on University Avenue in the center of campus near All Saints’ Chapel and the University Book and Supply Store, the new Elliott park playground will include a balance beam, bridge, climbing structures, swing sets, spinning elements and a musical component. The park will be accessible for all children and will incorporate local and natural materials. 

“This is an important partnership between the SCA and the University of the South to benefit the community,” said Kiki Beavers, SCA president. “The five-year MOU clearly identifies the separate responsibilities of the Civic Association and the University.”

The Civic Association will secure funding for the purchase of the playground equipment and installation; inspect the boundary and notify physical plant services if action is needed; be the point of contact for complaints; secure and maintain safety certificates with GameTime, the playground equipment manufacturer; and under GameTime’s supervision, oversee the community build portion of the construction and installation.

The University will be responsible for site preparation and drainage; accessibility and improving parking facilities; and the cost of moving and or replacing the playground equipment if the site is needed for other purposes. 

In response to a question about the location of the playground, Provost John Swallow said, “Yes, there is a planning document that shows a new library in that location. But since that building has a $50 million price tag, I don’t see it happening any time soon.” 

The issue of insurance, Beavers said, was still under discussion, but was important to both the Civic Association and the University.

The Civic Association must raise $21,241 by Sept. 30 for the playground. To date, $43,759 of the playground’s cost of $65,000 has been raised. Major funders include the South Cumberland Community Fund, the Sewanee Community Council Funding Project, the Kaj Krogstad Memorial Fund, the Joel and Trudy Cunningham Charitable Fund, and donations through a designated fund with the Sewanee Community Chest.

“If everyone living in Sewanee gave $10, we’d be finished,” Beavers said, encouraging community members to step forward and make a contribution to a project that will benefit Sewanee residents.

The Civic Association has a number of grant proposals pending. Beavers said other possible sources of support for the final funds are the Community Chest Opportunity Fund and financing through GameTime. Civic Association attorneys are still reviewing the MOU. The vote of approval granted Beavers power to approve the final document at her discretion.

Site preparation is slated to begin in September. Organizers hope that the playground will be delivered in mid-October. There will be time during this process for community participation in the playground’s installation. 

South Cumberland Community Fund Announces 2015 Grants

New park facilities, a walking path and a community garden for the Grundy County Jail are among the projects being funded by the 2015 grants awarded by the South Cumberland Community Fund (SCCF). 

“Since 2012, one of our core missions has been to cultivate resources by supporting nonprofit organizations across the Plateau,” said Margaret Woods, board president of the Community Fund. “We are thrilled with this newest series of projects, which create opportunities for our youth, build new community spaces and expand local support services for our communities.” 

There will be a reception at 2:30 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 2, in St. Mark’s Hall, in Claiborne Parish House at Otey Church in Sewanee to celebrate the new grant recipients and to thank the AmeriCorps VISTA members and volunteers.

The City of Coalmont, thanks to a group of volunteers led by Jeff Sholey working in partnership with county government and the South Cumberland Community Fund, now enjoys a public park on the shore of Big Creek Lake. The park was built in 2013 on county-owned land that had not been developed or maintained for recreational uses. The subsequent popularity of the park for families in the area has led to plans to add a 4,000-foot gravel walking trail. The SCCF grant of $10,000 will support the construction of the trail, which is expected to increase community access to safe areas for healthy exercise.

The City of Palmer has a town center where a public park, a museum of mining, the seat of government and the public school are all in close proximity.The park has many features, but lacks a restroom. In cooperation with the Conservation Committee of Grundy County and with the support of a $10,000 grant from SCCF, the community of Palmer will construct an ADA-accessible restroom to serve the park patrons and will extend the uses of the park.

The Grundy County Sheriff’s office, with the assistance of this $9,500 grant from the Community Fund, will construct a greenhouse and raised garden beds. Inmates, jail administrators, youth probationers and the community will maintain the garden and greenhouse, and food grown there will feed the inmates and be shared with the community. Taking care of the mini-farm will be a daily chore for inmates, who will receive training from community partners in planting and storing food. 

The Grundy County Historical Society library and research center holds approximately 1,600 books, photographs, albums and newsletters, as well as thousands of loose historical documents that date as far back as the 1840s, including volumes of records pertaining to the coal, iron/steel, and railroad industries of the region. SCCF’s grant of $7,406 will enable the Historical Society to purchase library software to identify, organize and improve public access to its holdings. In addition, the grant will support the temporary employment of a professional librarian to implement the project and train voluntary staff in managing the Society’s records and special collections in the future.

North Elementary School, operating under the auspices of the Grundy County Board of Education, is working to make its gymnasium a more effective venue for multi-media presentations, programs, assemblies and sporting events. Lacking an auditorium, the gymnasium is the only setting for a variety of school-related and community presentations. The configuration of the gym with side seating makes it difficult for the audience to see and hear many such programs. With this Community Fund grant of $10,000, the school will purchase two automated projection screens, two wireless projectors and the hardware to operate them. In addition, new microphones and speakers will be purchased to upgrade the school’s public address system.

Palmer Elementary School, one of seven public elementary schools in Grundy County, was built in 1927. It is one of only two schools with both a gymnasium and an auditorium. This SCCF grant of $1,600 will enable the school to replace its 15-year-old public address system with Bluetooth and wireless technology to serve both venues. The school has more than 75 events (such as sporting events, spelling bees and holiday programs) during the year, in addition to daily assemblies. The completion of the $2,000 project will be made possible by additional investments by the town and the school, plus local business and individual contributors.

Miracle on the Mountain Play Outside Park (MOM POP) is a year-old organization formed to create a major public recreation area with special emphasis on children with special needs in Grundy and surrounding counties. The park will be constructed on 14 acres located on Highway 108 across from the high school, on land which will be leased from the county. This grant of $10,000 from SCCF will be applied toward the $51,900 cost of Phase I, which will include parking and roadway access, restrooms and a concession stand, an amphitheater, and paved pathways to make the entire area ADA-compliant.

Mountain Heritage Preservation Society was established to educate the community, especially its children, about the unique cultural heritage they inherit from growing up on the Cumberland Plateau. The hope is that people will be strengthened by an understanding of and loyalty to that heritage. The Preservation Society is best known for the annual Mountaineers Day Festival, but the organization is broadly committed to advancing the welfare of Mountain communities. This SCCF grant of $10,000 will enable the Society to partner with the local baseball/softball organization in the construction of batting cages at the current ballfield in Tracy City. The organizers of baseball/softball have renewed energy and stability, and will seek further upgrades and expansion of the facilities in coming years.

Mountain T.O.P. is a 40-year-old, interdenominational ministry dedicated to addressing issues of poverty in the rural Cumberland region. The organization has drawn upon a culture of faith-based social commitment to recruit individuals, families and church groups to work on projects that meet the social, emotional, physical and spiritual needs of area residents. The projects are usually organized around the repair of homes and the operation of day camps for children and youth on the Plateau. The Adventure Guild in Chattanooga has assisted Mountain T.O.P. in the construction and operation of two challenge courses (a low and a high ropes course) on the Altamont campus. The Adventure Guild has given the courses to Mountain T.O.P. With this grant of $8,009 from the Community Fund, the organization will purchase equipment and do training for its staff for the ongoing operation of the courses. It is expected that the new arrangement will be more efficient and help Mountain T.O.P. recruit additional retreat groups that are attracted to the area’s wilderness hiking and camping resources.

The Sewanee Children’s Center is a preschool operated by a parents’ cooperative to provide early learning experiences in a full-day program to children ages 2 to 5. The Center also provides after-school care for preschoolers and children through 8 years of age. Under the leadership of new director Harriet Runkle, the SCC has planned a school/community garden to serve as an outdoor classroom to teach students gardening skills, healthy eating habits, life cycles of plants and animals, and good stewardship of natural resources. Produce will be shared with the Community Action Center and used for special events at Otey Parish. This SCCF grant of $9,587 will enable the construction of the 40-foot by 60-foot garden, including a deer-proof fence.

Sewanee Community Chest, organized by the long-standing Sewanee Civic Association (SCA), has raised a million dollars in the last decade to support local organizations serving the public good. During its storied history, the SCA has advanced the welfare of the unincorporated community of Sewanee and the region around it through initiatives as diverse as building the public elementary school in Sewanee, completing a state highway to the Marion County line, and raising money for a black community center. The Parks Committee of SCA has proposed to restore Elliott Park on the campus of the University at a cost of $70,000. The park, open to the public, will have a rich assortment of features to promote physical adventures by children. The Community Chest will raise the funds as a special project; this grant of $10,000 from the Community Fund will be applied to the overall cost of the park. 

Earlier this year, the board of the Community Fund became aware of a plan to create a plateau-wide children’s choir to perform traditional Appalachian folk and gospel songs at the annual Trails and Trilliums spring festival produced by the Friends of South Cumberland State Park. This project was a perfect fit for the Paul S. McConnell Music Grant of $3,500, awarded to the South Cumberland Community Fund to support music programs in our region. The board reached out to the Friends group to offer support for the choir project. The presentation by 130 children in grades 4–8 from five elementary schools was one of the highlights of Trails and Trillium. The hope is that the choir will become an annual program.

Program Serves Thousands of Meals in First Month

After just over a month, the South Cumberland Summer Meal program is already off to a great start, according to Kelly Farina, the VISTA volunteer who is the project coordinator. Working in partnership with the South Cumberland Community Fund, the University of the South and the USDA, the meal program is working with 21 organizations in Franklin and Grundy counties to serve more than 5,500 meals to kids and teens on and off the Mountain. This program is free for any person under the age of 18, and no registration is necessary in order to receive a meal. 

Several new programs have started or expanded services in July on the Mountain. New programs in Tracy City at the Public Library and Christ Episcopal Church are underway. On Mondays and Wednesdays each week, the Crow Creek Valley Community Center in Sherwood now offers lunch. The Grundy Housing Authority is also offering breakfast and lunch three days a week. The last day of the Summer Meal Program will be July 31. 

Meal programs at Christ Episcopal also include programs for kids that range from demonstrations and interactive games on water and energy conservation to visits from park rangers at the South Cumberland State Park. The Rev. Stephen Eichler of Christ Episcopal said, “We are excited to be participating in the summer meal program and to be providing nutritious meals, along with enriching activities!”

The schedule for the remainder of the program is:

Cumberland Baptist Church, Beersheba Springs—6–8 p.m., Monday–Friday, July 27–31

Christ Church, Tracy City —Noon–1 p.m., Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays

Crow Creek Valley Community Center, Sherwood —10 a.m.–1 p.m., Mondays and Wednesdays

First Methodist Church, Tracy City—5–7 p.m., Wednesdays

Grundy Housing Authority, Monteagle —9–10 a.m., Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays

May Justus Memorial Library, Monteagle —10–11 a.m., Tuesdays and Thursdays

Midway/St.James playground, Sewanee—Noon–1 p.m., Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays

Palmer Public Library, Palmer—11 a.m.–noon, Thursdays

Tracy City Public Library, Tracy City—11 a.m.–1 p.m., Wednesdays

For more information about the South Cumberland Summer Meal Program, contact Farina at 598-1851 or email
<sfpvista@gmail.com>.

SCCF Announces 2015 Grant Round

The South Cumberland Community Fund (SCCF) welcomes grant requests from nonprofit organizations to support initiatives that strengthen community and improve lives in the region.
The deadline for applications is May 1; final selection of grant recipients will be made by August 1.
“Grant funding is one of the main ways that the South Cumberland Community Fund cultivates leadership and resources across the Plateau. We’re proud of our collaborations with about 30 community organizations, and our almost $300,000 in direct grants,” said Margaret Woods, SCCF board chair.
All grant applicants for 2015 must attend an information session designed to ensure they understand what is required in an application. There will be three sessions, all held at the Coalmont Community Center: 10 a.m., Saturday, March 28; 5 p.m., Tuesday, April 7; and 5 p.m., Tuesday, April 21.
The SCCF has seven priority areas for its grants: Building Our Sense of Community; Strengthening Our Economy; Developing the Potential of Our Youth; Tapping the Potential of Our Elders; Conserving the Past; Enlarging the Vision of the Future; and Meeting Basic Needs. For more information, visit <southcumberland​communityfund.org/grants>.

Reincarnation of Old GCHS in Tracy City -- A Dream on the Verge of Coming True

by Leslie Lytle, Messenger Staff Writer

What had seemed like a lost cause may soon become a reality with reincarnation of the old Grundy County High School building in Tracy City as the South Cumberland Learning and Development Center. The center will focus on workforce development, helping local people get ready for local work by providing the skills needed to fill jobs in Grundy County and the surrounding vicinity. Julie Willems Keel, associate executive director of Mountain T.O.P., a local nonprofit agency, and Emily Partin, a Grundy County native, serve as project co-chairs. But the story that gave birth to the initiative, an effort plagued with obstacles and misfortune, began long before Partin and Keel became involved.

In 2006, the Southeast Development District of Chattanooga applied for a grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) on behalf of Tracy City to establish a trade school in the old high school building. Grundy County mayor LaDue Bouldin spearheaded the effort on the local level, along with Tracy City mayor Barry Rollins. ARC awarded Tracy City $500,000 with the city required to supply $100,000 in matching funds.

With the grant in place, oversight fell to the Tracy City mayor, but Rollins was not re-elected, and his successor died in office. The onset of the 2008 recession left Grundy County struggling with day-to-day survival, and efforts focused on programs meeting immediate needs, such as the Grundy County Food Bank.

Keel’s work with Mountain T.O.P. stresses capacity-building for groups awarded grants for community development.

“It’s not uncommon for small communities to be granted large sums without a mechanism in place for planning and implementing the project,” Keel said.

Keel credits Emily Partin with reviving the ARC grant and getting the project back on track.

As a mental health professional, Partin worked off the Mountain until a job with the Grundy County School system brought her back home. Partin first learned about the ARC grant in 2011 from Tracy City mayor Jimmy Campbell. Campbell didn’t know the status of the grant. He was in ill health and soon after, resigned from office. Then in early 2012 at a Grundy County Rotary Club meeting, a visitor asked if Tracy City intended to pursue the project outlined in the ARC grant. The visitor was Tara Nichols, a representative from the Southeast Development District (SDD), the organization that had originally applied for the grant on Tracy City’s behalf.

Partin met with Nichols and took her to visit the old high school. The original grant was to cover the cost of a roof for the library wing of the school and to purchase equipment to teach carpentry skills. In the six intervening years, water damage to the library wing rendered it irreparable. Nichols insisted the money could not be used for other purposes, but Partin persuaded her to request the grant be refocused to fund renovation of the front portion of the building for use in technical education rather than as a trade school.

Unfortunately, Nichols left SDD, and her successor served only a short time, relocating to another state before he succeeded in getting authorization to repurpose the grant. But, finally, in the summer of 2014 the granting agency, ARC, gave permission for the funds to be used to renovate the front portion of the building.

Bid requests went out for the project for window repair; upgrading the wiring, technical specifications, and heating and cooling unit; and installation of a required sprinkler system. Then doom again reared its head. All the bids came back dramatically over budget. There just wasn’t enough money.

Almost coincidentally, though, another door opened. Grundy County officials completed a Community Development Block Grant project, making the county eligible to apply for another grant. On Jan. 26, 2015, the County Commission voted to apply for a $315,000 Block Grant to flesh out the budget for the old high school project. Partin also plans to apply for a grant to help offset the cost of window repair and the heating and cooling unit.

Partin and Keel have secured pledges to cover 100 percent of the $100,000 in matching grant money, with donors ranging from the South Cumberland Community Fund to individuals pledging in-kind contributions in the form of labor.

ACA & Health Care Across the Plateau

The deadline to enroll in health coverage through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is Sunday, Feb. 15, and there are local resources to help consumers get more information and obtain insurance. The South Cumberland Plateau Health Network is sponsoring two Marketplace enrollment events.

Free in-person assistance will be available 10 a.m.–2 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 12, in the Music Room at the Smoke House Restaurant in Monteagle. Certified ACA navigators and application counselors will be on-site. They will be able to answer questions about eligibility and enrollment procedures, assist consumers with the enrollment process and facilitate options for insurance premium reductions.

On Saturday, Feb. 14, enrollment assistance will be available, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., in the lobby of the Southern Tennessee Regional Hospital in Winchester. 

To enroll in ACA, folks must bring the following information: proof of identity; Social Security numbers and birth dates for individuals in the household; pay stubs; W-2 forms; policy numbers for any current insurance coverage; and a valid email address.

The Health Insurance Marketplace helps people without health coverage enroll in a high-quality plan. When you apply, you’ll learn if you qualify for a health insurance plan with savings based on your income, and learn if you qualify for premium tax credits that lower the costs of coverage. 

People who were enrolled in the 2014 Marketplace should not file their income taxes until they receive IRS form 1095-A from the Department of Health and Human Services. When it arrives, verify that the information is correct and keep copies of it. If there is a problem with the form, go to <www.healthcare.gov/tax-issues> or call (800) 318-2596 to get it corrected. If you filed your tax return before you received the 1095-A form, you must file an amended federal income tax return. 

The South Cumberland Plateau Health Network and the town mayors of Grundy County are sponsoring community conversations about how to improve healthcare in the county. Organizers want to hear from everyone. The information they receive will help as new programs are created to improve the health and wellness of the entire community. Dinner will be provided by the Smoke House. There is no charge to attend.

On Thursday, Feb. 12, the meeting will be at Dutch Maid Bakery in Tracy City. On Thursday, Feb. 19, the meeting will be at the Smoke House.

On Thursday, Feb. 26, the meeting will be at the Three Crosses at Calvary Church, Altamont. On Thursday, March 5, the meeting will be at Coalmont Community Center. On Thursday, March 12, the meeting will be at Pelham United Methodist Church.

All meetings will be 5:30–7 p.m. On the day of the event, if schools are closed due to inclement weather, then the Community Conversation will be rescheduled for a later date. 

These conversations are made possible through the support of the Grundy County Health Council, the South Cumberland Community Fund and the South Cumberland Plateau VISTA Program. 

For more information contact Katie Goforth at (615) 417-7258 or email <Goforth.SCPHN@gmail.com>.

Town Meetings Scheduled About Area Health Care

The South Cumberland Plateau Health Network and the town mayors of Grundy County are sponsoring community conversations about how to improve health care in the county. Organizers want to hear from everyone. The information they receive will help as new programs are created to improve the health and wellness of the entire community. Dinner will be served. There is no charge to attend.

On Thursday, Feb. 5, the meeting will be at the Palmer Community Center. On Thursday, Feb. 12, the meeting will be at Dutch Maid Bakery in Tracy City. On Thursday, Feb. 19, the meeting will be at the DuBose Conference Center. 

All meetings will be 5:30–7 p.m. Organizers expect to have locations for future meetings in Altamont/Beersheba, Pelham and Coalmont.

These conversations are made possible through the support of the Grundy County Health Council, the South Cumberland Community Fund and the South Cumberland Plateau VISTA Program. 

The mission of the South Cumberland Plateau Health Network is to improve the health and quality of life for the people of the region.

The mission of the South Cumberland Community Fund is to improve the quality of life across the plateau by increasing philanthropic giving and providing community leadership to build on the strength of the area’s people, communities and natural setting; enhance community capacity and collaboration; and support innovative ways to solve community problems. 

For more information contact Katie Goforth at (615) 417-7258 or email <Goforth.SCPHN@gmail.com>.

Grundy County Chosen for Local Foods, Local Places Program

The White House Rural Council announced on Dec. 3 that Grundy County/Tracy City was among 26 communities in the United States named to its Local Foods, Local Places initiative.

This effort is designed to help rural communities as they seek creative approaches to integrating entrepreneurship, environmental management, public health and other place-based considerations into successful economic planning. Local food development is often a key part of the strategy.

Local Food, Local Places will provide technical support to integrate local food systems into community economic action plans, help revitalize struggling downtowns and preserve farms and undeveloped land.

The local effort was developed and submitted under the auspices of the municipality of Tracy City and Grundy County, and builds on the work of South Cumberland Community Development Partnership, Grundy County Health Council and Diabetes Coalition, Tracy City Farmer’s Market, South Cumberland Food Hub, Downtown Sidewalk/Mountain Goat Trail Connector Project, Tennessee Main Street program, the University of the South’s program and the Chattanooga Area Regional Council of Governments-Southeast Tennessee Development District.

“This award means that in the coming months, a team of experts will visit and have workshops to help us design concrete steps to improve our community,” said Emily Partin of the Tracy City Business Club. Among the pieces of the project will be local food, tourism and travel, and health issues.

The 26 communities were chosen from among 316 applicants.

A team of agricultural, transportation, environmental, health and regional economic consultants will work directly with the communities to develop local food projects they proposed. 

Local Foods, Local Places is a federal initiative providing direct technical support and expertise to community partners integrating local food systems into regional economic action plans. Under this effort, a team of federal agricultural, transportation, environmental, public health and regional economic experts will work directly with communities to develop specific local food projects. These efforts will make a significant impact in the communities participating in the Local Foods, Local Places initiative. 

Local Foods, Local Places is a unique partnership among the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC), the Delta Regional Authority (DRA), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The initiative draws on the Administration’s Partnership for Sustainable Communities, USDA’s Seven Strategies for Economic Development, and other place-based strategies to address regional challenges. 

Local Foods, Local Places will provide direct technical support to selected communities to help them develop and implement action plans promoting local food and downtown revitalization. 

VISTA Volunteers Work Across the Plateau

Nine VISTA volunteers are beginning their work with five local organizations. The AmeriCorps VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) program, co-sponsored by the South Cumberland Community Fund and the University of the South, is sending volunteers to work for one year or more with the Chattanooga Area Food Bank’s mobile food pantries, Discover Together, the Grundy County Health Council, Mountain T.O.P. and the South Cumberland Community Fund.

McKenzie Liegel and Zach Berry are working with the Chattanooga Area Food Bank in Grundy and Marion counties. Liegel grew up in a small town in rural Wisconsin and graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is the VISTA mobile food pantry coordinator for Grundy County. 

Berry is from Chattanooga and studied literature and philosophy before graduating with a B.A. in 2013. He is the VISTA mobile food pantry coordinator for Marion County. Liegel and Berry will work to develop mobile food pantry programs and delivery systems with a local support network in their respective counties.

VISTAs working with Discover Together are Chris Paff and Michelle Thibodeaux. Paff, from Portland, Ore., worked as a computer programmer for a year before serving in Tanzania for three years with the Peace Corps. As VISTA community workforce development coordinator, he will build workforce development activities for parents of young children participating in Discover Together, and potentially for other adults in the community. 

Thibodeaux is a recent Sewanee graduate, originally from Atlanta, Ga. As a student, she worked with multiple schools in Grundy County and now plans to pursue a career in education. She is the VISTA community ambassador coordinator for Discover Together, and will develop a network of trained volunteers to better engage families in Discover Together programs and the community.

The Grundy County Health Council will be working with VISTAs Lacey Oliver and John-David Wheeler. Oliver was raised in the local area and graduated from Sewanee in May. As the VISTA school health activities coordinator, she will develop trainings for students and other volunteers in all seven schools in Grundy County and will develop a school anti-tobacco program. 

Wheeler is originally from Union City, Tenn. He served in the U.S. Army, then graduated from University of Tennessee-Martin. He is the VISTA health network coordinator, and will expand GCHC’s partnerships with local social service agencies and churches to develop a community-wide health information and education network.

Ida Zago and Melanie Pozuc are working with Mountain T.O.P. Zago grew up in Michigan and New York City, and also graduated in May from Sewanee. She is the VISTA weatherization coordinator, and will create a new low-income housing weatherization program that will help improve the economic well-being of area families. 

Pozuc is a recent graduate of Kent State University. She has experience with Mountain T.O.P. and is looking forward to working with the organization in a new capacity. As the VISTA communication and assessment coordinator, she will develop a volunteer networking and communication system in support of Mountain T.O.P. programs, determining community needs and assessing the results of programs.

Franklin County native Charles McClain is working with the South Cumberland Community Fund. Serving in his church has been important to him, and last year he entered into the discernment process. He is the VISTA grant-writing coordinator and will help build the capacity of community organizations by developing a grant-writing and management network for them.

For more information contact Jim Peterman, director of Community Engagement at Sewanee, at 598-1482 or by email to <jpeterma@sewanee.edu>.

University Creates New Community Engagement Office

The University has announced the creation of an Office of Community Engagement. Spurred by the growth of the Bonner and Canale service internship programs in the College and the establishment of the South Cumberland Plateau VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) Program, the new office will work to meet the growing needs of students and expand the University’s relationships with other community organizations.

The Office of Community Engagement is composed of three staff members. Jim Peterman, professor of philosophy and director of Community Engagement, will continue to direct Community-Engaged Learning, the academic community engagement program, as well as the Bonner Leaders service internship program.

Nicky Hamilton, C’99, associate director of Community Engagement, will direct the South Cumberland Plateau VISTA Program and also assist the South Cumberland Community Fund to develop the capacity of community organizations to alleviate poverty. In this unique role, she will use her practical and academic training at the Clinton School of Pubic Service to help faculty and students understand how students can engage in the wide variety of facets of community engagement as a central component of their education in which they learn optimal ways of making a difference in their communities.

Robin Hille Michaels, assistant director of Community Engagement, will continue work with students through the Bonner Leaders Service Internship Program and the Canale Service Internship Program. In working closely with students and community partners to place students in community organizations, she helps Sewanee service interns develop professional skills and social understanding commensurate with the demands of their service projects.

The Community Engagement Office will work with its community partners to understand needs in the three-county area (Franklin, Grundy and Marion counties); what organizations (churches, clinics, schools) are invested in addressing those needs; what community-based research projects may assist; and how to align resources, including student internships, in support of those organizations and community-based research projects. In doing so, the new office seeks to support the University’s purpose to help students lead lives of “achievement and service” in local communities.

Given the burgeoning community engagement activity at the University by students, faculty and staff (sometimes with multiple groups reaching out to the same community organizations), the time is right to administer these community partnerships through an office that is aware of and able to monitor all of the programmatic relationships, and ensures that they are not only sustainable but also beneficial to Sewanee students and the local communities hosting them. 

The current community engagement plan and the University’s 2012 Strategic Plan envisioned the development of an Office of Community Engagement in its role in coordinating student opportunities “to learn about, and learn from, the variety of populations and their experiences, both locally and internationally. Many of the intractable problems facing the world—food security, poverty, public health, climate change and conflict—have local and global dimensions.” The opening of this office fulfills that goal.

Sewanee’s VISTA program came from a deepening of the University’s relationship to local community organizations and especially to the South Cumberland Community Fund, a co-sponsor and co-funder of this program. The VISTA program is also underwritten in part by the Jessie Ball duPont Fund. The program is also supported by a grant from the Corporation for National and Community Service.

For more information contact Peterman by email, <jfpeterm@sewanee.edu>.

South Cumberland Community Fund Awards Grants to Nine Groups

The South Cumberland Community Fund (SCCF) announced its latest grant recipients on Aug. 3 at the DuBose Conference Center in Monteagle. The grants, made to nine area nonprofit organizations, total nearly $64,000.

“One of the primary functions of the Community Fund is to support people and organizations who are making the South Cumberland Plateau a healthier, better-educated, and culturally richer place. We’re proud to honor these nine groups for the work they are doing and to support them in our fourth round of grants,” said Scott Parrish, SCCF board chair. “This, together with our investment of $60,000 in capacity-building initiatives, will mean a total investment in our community of nearly $125,000 by the Community Fund in 2014.”

The grant recipients and their programs for which they will receive funding are:

Animal Alliance-South Cumberland is a six-year old, all-volunteer spay/neuter program that works to reduce the cost and suffering of unwanted and abandoned dogs and cats on the Plateau. To date, the Alliance has sterilized more than 2,500 animals in the community. A prior grant from SCCF for the “Fix by Four” project enabled the Alliance to conduct an educational program advocating the sterilization of pets by the age of 4 months before their first litter and to subsidize the cost of spay/neuter procedures and rabies vaccinations for such pets owned by low-income residents of the community. This new grant of $3,600 for “The Big Fix” project targets medium to large breed dogs, the ones most likely to have large litters, create neighborhood problems, and suffer from abuse. With these funds, Animal Alliance will be able to help 50 low-income residents sterilize their large breed dogs. 

Appalachian Women’s Guild is a 25-year old grass-roots organization that provides “a hand up, not a handout” to help meet the basic needs of impoverished residents of our region. The organization aspires to do a significant upgrade to its aging facilities over the next few years. The immediate focus is the thrift shop, which generates the lion’s share of AWG’s income. This grant of $7,000 will refurbish and promote the store in order to provide a more appealing shopping experience and generate greater revenues for the programs offered by AWG.

The City of Altamont proposes to increase the utilization of the auditorium of the Florence Scruggs Building for theatrical, musical and dance performances. The City intends to develop a calendar of high quality events that will attract paying audiences. A snack bar will generate additional income to sustain the programs, some of which will feature professional/semi-professional artists. A grant from SCCF will enable the City to install a sound system in the facility. In addition, the Paul S. McConnell Music Grant, awarded to SCCF to support music on the plateau, will provide underwriting for performances by local musicians in the venue. The total amount of the grant is $6,725.

Coalmont Elementary School, in partnership with the Grundy Health Council and the University of the South, has focused in recent years on increasing exercise and physical activity in its after-school program. Now it is time to promote healthy physical activities for the entire school and surrounding community. Recognizing the limited availability of safe walking spaces in the area, the school proposes to construct a quarter-mile walking track around the adjacent ball field. This grant of $10,000 is directed toward the cost of installing the track; the project has also attracted the support of the Bristol Myers Foundation.

Community Action Committee is a ministry of the Otey Parish of Sewanee. It provides groceries for over three hundred families per week, plus assistance with utilities, medical, employment and housing needs. All clients are below the poverty level. This grant of $2,660, aimed at food security and sustainability, will enable CAC to provide chicken coops and starter flocks for two clients willing to maintain them for the benefit of themselves and their neighbors. In addition, ten container gardens will be provided to elderly and disabled residents.

Mountain Goat Trail Alliance is a rails-to-trails recreation project seeking to create a multi-use corridor along a 35-mile track from Cowan in Franklin County to Palmer in Grundy County. The first section of the trail, between Sewanee and St. Andrew’s-Sewanee School, is complete, and construction of the next section from SAS to Monteagle will begin this year. A previous grant from the fund is enabling MGTA to complete the acquisition of rail bed between Tracy City and Palmer. This new grant of $10,000 will support the purchase of additional rail bed between Monteagle and Tracy City, plus provide partial compensation for a contract employee to administer a Recreational Trails grant recently awarded by Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation. 

St. James Episcopal Church in Midway, with a grant from the Dandridge Trust, constructed a playground 20 years ago to serve the community. It is the only recreational space available to the children of this community. Today the playground equipment has deteriorated and fallen behind contemporary safety standards. This grant of $10,000 from the fund will enable the church to refurbish the playground with new swings, rubber mulch, basketball backboards and nets, and soccer goals, plus the addition of picnic tables. The church provides liability insurance and general maintenance of the playground.

Swiss Memorial Elementary School, serving the Gruetli-Laager community, has worked in partnership with the Grundy County Health Council, the school health program, and the school nutrition program to focus on strategies to combat chronic health conditions. With grant support and innovation funding, these partners have been able to build a greenhouse and a community garden to make healthy foods available for students, staff and the community. This SCCF grant of $3,760, made possible by a grant from the Bonnaroo Works Fund, will help pay for an after-school program that will provide training in many aspects of nutrition, such as planting and maintaining a garden, farmers’ markets, food preservation and vegetarian cooking.

The South Cumberland Learning and Development Center, operating under the auspices of Tracy City, is a bold undertaking to refurbish the old high school and make it available for lifelong learning programs for youth and adults that improve employment preparation, health and educational outcomes, and increase community connections by fostering collaboration and partnerships. This grant of $10,000 goes toward the local match required to access a $500,000 grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission for renovation of the building.

McCardell Honored by Monteagle Sewanee Rotary

On June 11, the Monteagle Sewanee Rotary Club quarterly social was hosted by University Vice-Chancellor John McCardell and Bonnie McCardell at Clement Chen Hall. This event provided a wonderful backdrop for the club to honor Bonnie McCardell as a Paul Harris Fellow “in appreciation of tangible and significant assistance given for the furtherance of better understanding and friendly relations between peoples in the community and across the Plateau.” 

Highlights of Bonnie’s community involvement include her work with “Camp Discover,” as a board member of the South Cumberland Community Fund, and her involvement with the Community Engaged Learning program at the University.

Harris was one of the four founders of Rotary in 1905 and remained a leading light of the organization until his death in the 1940s. In 1957, Rotary International created the Paul Harris Fellowship to further the humanitarian and educational programs of the organization. Past president Bill Davis and Tim Graham, current president of the Monteagle Sewanee Rotary Club, made the presentation.

Local Groups Secure Bonnaroo Grants

The South Cumberland Community Fund and the Mountain Goat Trail Alliance have been awarded grants from the Bonnaroo Works Fund.

The Community Fund’s award of $3,500 will support the fund’s initiatives in education, cultural enrichment and community-building. “The people of the South Cumberland Plateau are creating innovative and successful programs to improve the quality of life here. The Bonnaroo Works Fund grant gives the Community Fund another way to support those programs,” said Scott Parrish, Community Fund board chair.

The MGTA’s grant of $5,000 will go toward construction of Phase II of the trail from Monteagle to Sewanee. “Bonnaroo’s emphasis on creating healthy communities fits right in with our mission to offer recreational and health benefits, as well as economic opportunity, to the area,” said Janice Thomas, board president of the MGTA.

The Bonnaroo Works Fund supports community projects and educational, arts and environmental programs. For more information go to <www.bonnaroo.com/get-involved>.

VISTA Program Hiring Begins

The AmeriCorps VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) program will bring 10 volunteers to the Cumberland Plateau in August. They will work for a year or more with the Chattanooga Area Food Bank’s mobile food pantries, the Grundy County Health Council, Mountain T.O.P., the South Cumberland Community Fund and Discover Together (a partnership between the University of the South, Yale University and children’s publishing company Scholastic).

Applications are now being accepted for the 10 VISTAs and one VISTA leader, who will assist the program director. The planners hope to draw applicants from both within and outside the local area. The goal of the VISTA program is to build capacity and expand current outreach projects; the VISTAs will be trained in ways to provide for larger population sizes and new areas. Each volunteer will work for at least a year with his or her designated organization.

The projects are designed to last three years. The link to apply is: <https://my.americorps.gov/mp/listing/viewListing.do?id=54895&fromSearch=true>. Those who have already served as VISTA members may apply here for the VISTA leader position: <https://my.americorps.gov/mp/listing/viewListing.do?id=54895&fromSearch=true>.

The organizations in which VISTAs will serve offer a variety of services in the region. The Chattanooga Area Food Bank provides food to an estimated 20,000 clients each week, including mobile deliveries to thousands living in the 20-county service area. The Grundy County Health Council addresses the health needs of Grundy County residents, assuring that quality healthcare is available, teaching programs on nutrition and diabetes, and working to get Grundy County residents more active. Mountain T.O.P. is a Cumberland Plateau outreach project that seeks to meet people’s physical, emotional, spiritual and social needs. The South Cumberland Community Fund was established in 2012 to improve the quality of life across the Plateau by providing community leadership and increasing philanthropy. Discover Together, a project of the South Cumberland Collaborative for Children and Families, is designed to provide a safe gathering place for young children and their parents and caregivers to share in learning and exploration.

The VISTA opportunity came about when the University of the South received an invitation from the national office of the Corporation for National and Community Service and applied for a grant to hire local and national volunteers. The program is cosponsored by the South Cumberland Community Fund, whose support, leadership and commitment to benefit Plateau communities was central to the success of the grant proposal.

South Cumberland Plateau Hosts New VISTA Program

Sewanee has learned that it will be an AmeriCorps VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) site. Ten VISTA volunteers will be hired to serve within a number of community organizations, including the Chattanooga Area Food Bank’s Mobile Food Pantries for Local Schools, Discover Together (a collaboration between Sewanee, Scholastic and Yale University), Grundy County Health Council, MountainTOP and the South Cumberland Community Fund. 

VISTA volunteers will commit to a 12-month term of service, beginning in August 2014 and will focus on addressing poverty alleviation through a variety of programs, such as education, health and hunger. Each VISTA volunteer will be matched with a service site at an off-campus, nonprofit partner where he or she will connect the resources of the campus and the community to further strengthen their work. For more information contact professor Jim Peterman, director of Community Engaged Learning, by email, <jfpeterm@sewanee.edu>.

Benefit Auction Set for South Cumberland Community Fund

A VIP University of Tennessee football experience, dinner with Pulitzer Prize-winner Jon Meacham at his home, and a stay at Hollywood’s Magic Castle are among the special items included in the Monteagle Inn and Retreat Center’s auction at 5 p.m., Saturday, April 26, to support the South Cumberland Community Fund.

“Jim and Lee Harmon brought the auction idea to the Community Fund because they support our work as the only nonprofit concerned with the entire South Cumberland Plateau. The funds from this auction at their wonderful inn will enable us to support worthy programs in the areas of early childhood education, county-wide health initiatives and the arts,” said Scott Parrish, Community Fund board chair.

All auction items will be available for online bidding beginning Monday, April 21. Some will have a “Buy It Now” option and can be purchased outright. All other auction items and all “Buy It Now” items that were not purchased will then go to the silent and live auctions. A complete list of auction items can be found at <southcumberlandcommunityfund.org/auction>. The link for online bidding will also be posted there on Monday, April 21.

“The Monteagle Inn and the South Cumberland Community Fund would like to thank all of those who have made such generous contributions to support this auction,” Parrish said. The funds raised will be used to provide grants to groups offering innovative ways to meet community goals, he said.

The mission of the South Cumberland Community Fund is to improve the quality of life across the plateau by increasing philanthropic giving and providing community leadership to build on the strength of the area’s people, communities and natural setting, enhance community capacity and collaboration, and support innovative ways to solve community problems.