Organizations from all over Blount County came together Saturday, March 30, for the first ever Blount County Volunteer Festival, organized by Robert McClelland and Jamie Alexandria Bate.
The weather couldn’t have been better as prospective volunteers walked around the parking lot of Rio East Church, chatting with different organizations about volunteer opportunities.
Mayor Ed Mitchell made an appearance at the festival and issued a proclamation that March 30, 2024, be Blount County Volunteer Day. During his speech, Mitchell said, “I don’t know if there is any place other than Blount County, City of Alcoa and City of Maryville where we help the people in need any more than that.”
35 agencies had indicated that they would be attending. Among those were The Pregnancy Resource Center and Tennessee Valley Coalition for the Homeless.
Beth Ottinger from The Pregnancy Resource Center described the organization as “a ministry that has been in the Blount County community for 38 years.”
“We are a faith-based ministry offering life-affirming holistic wraparound services to moms and dads who are facing difficult pregnancy decisions,” she said.
Volunteers with The Pregnancy Resource Center mentor expecting parents, guide them to resources and help them navigate their pregnancy, she said.
Ottinger said they were clued into the festival by another nonprofit participating in the event.
Macrea Love with Tennessee Valley Coalition for the Homeless (TVCH) said, “I think this is a really important event for people to come out and understand just exactly how many different services exist in Blount County and how they don’t overlap, how they work together to provide a more expansive service to everyone.”
Their mission states, “TVCH is a non-profit organization existing to house the homeless, educate the community, and equip stakeholders to provide lasting solutions to homelessness.”
Love said that their organization not only helps with housing solutions but also helps people for whom housing may not be an option.
“Our street outreach program also works with 12 counties in East Tennessee. We provide food, water, hygiene supplies, as well as tents, sleeping bags, clothing and we just started a mobile shower program,” he said.
Robert McClelland, co-founder of the event, said the idea was born out of a conversation he and Jamie Alexandria Bate had during a Morning Cup Toastmasters event. They noticed that each other’s speeches carried themes of connection and the importance of volunteerism and being of service.
McClelland and Bate started brainstorming ways to help people who wanted to volunteer but were uncertain where to start. McClelland said they wanted to create an event “where people can come together, have some fun at a family event but achieve the fundamental purpose of connecting with agencies.”
McClelland is no stranger to volunteering. He gives his time to Blount County Friends of the Library, Kiwanis Club of Alcoa, Blount County United, NAACP and Senior SMiles. Through volunteering, McClelland said he not only gets to know the different areas of the county but also gets to know the members of the community.
Festival attendees also had the opportunity to hear live music from Mary Gamboa, participate in an Easter egg hunt and grab lunch from The Pup Hut or a sweet treat from Sugar Mama Cotton Candy Co.
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