Family Promise of Knoxville

Who we are:

Hello supporters! Our names are Taylor Pirrello, Lucciana Ricelli, Olivia Burghard, and Brendan Coad. As students at the University of Tennessee, we want to support our local non-profit organizations. An organization that resonated with us was the Family Promise of Knoxville. Our group is very passionate about helping Family Promise and asks for your financial support. We hope your financial support can help fund programming that ensures a stable living environment for those in need.

Family Promise was founded in 2005 and is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that strives to help low-income families as well as homeless people in the area. They help families address root causes that are affecting homelessness, as well as help them rebuild their lives. Their mission is to provide a community-based response that empowers and equips families experiencing homelessness and housing-instability to achieve sustainable independence. They work in East Tennessee specifically to support parents in building a better future for their families.

What we need:

Our goal is to raise around $1,000 for Family Promise of Knoxville. This money would directly help homeless and low-income families in need. We are asking for any way to give back to the community in need and anything that will bring them light in such a difficult time. We receive donations that aren't just money, but supplies such as toiletries, feminine products, diapers, gift cards, laundry supplies, canned foods, and infinitely more.

How it helps:

The impact of your funding will have a rippling affect to the community and encourage others to jump on the bandwagon of spreading awareness. It is exciting to see how much just a simple donation can leave long-lasting benefits for these families in need. Since Family Promise of Knoxville is a non-profit organization, there is only so much they can do.

How else you can help:

If donating isn’t an option for you, there are other ways to support and help our community.

Like and follow the organization on social media

Facebook: @Vols for Family Promise

Instagram: @familypromiseknoxville

Purchase items from the wishlist

Wishlist - Family Promise of Knoxville

Volunteer

https://www.familypromiseknoxville.org/volunteer

Attend events

https://www.familypromiseknoxville.org/events

Who We Are

We are a group of students at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville that are raising money for a nonprofit organization named Family Promise of Knoxville. It is important to us because Family Promise is in a position to create real change and provide help to many people within the Knoxville community. This organization matters to us specifically due to their wide range of help that they are providing and their prominence within the Knoxville area.

Family Promise is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization located in Central Knoxville that specializes in providing housing or shelter to broken families. They have provided necessary things such as shelter, meals, and stabilization to the Knoxville community for twenty years. They believe that families should be brought together-not be separated-during the most difficult time in their lives.

What We Need

Back in 2019, Family Promise launched an Eviction Prevention Program, which has helped nearly 365 individuals from imminent risk of becoming homeless. Knoxville’s rent grew by more than four times the national rate during the second quarter of 2023. With rental property growing at such high rates, families are being pushed out of housing, with too many being forced to live in their cars.

We are hoping to raise at least $1500 to cover a month's rent and utilities for a family. This will keep a family from living on the streets or in their cars and eliminate danger for these families and the community. Family Promise then offers long-term stabilization support to families. This includes services such as tenancy training, credit repair/education, landlord mediation, health and wellness, and youth support.

How It Helps

Twenty five percent of the unhoused community in the Knoxville County area are families. With the assistance of your funds, a family can be prevented from losing their housing for a month, which can provide time to recover from sudden financial losses. These funds assist Family Promise through their Eviction Prevention Program which directly helps families in immediate danger of losing their housing.

How Else You Can Help

If you are unable to donate to this campaign today, please consider the many other ways to help this cause. First, you can share this campaign with your friends, family members and colleagues. You can also donate your time by volunteering. Donating items such as toiletries, books, diapers, and more is a helpful way to get involved. Attending events and fundraisers is another way to contribute. Lastly, you can follow Family Promise on Facebook.

Who We Are

We are five second-year students at the University of Tennessee Knoxville. This semester, we have partnered with Family Promise of Knoxville, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that focuses on helping unhoused and low-income families achieve sustainability. We chose to work with this organization because of its efforts to assist struggling families with finding long-term housing.

Since 2005, Family Promise of Knoxville has served hundreds of families in Knox County and the surrounding area. Their mission is to be a place of safety, shelter, and certainty while a family rebuilds their life. This organization utilizes community-wide resources and congregational spaces to meet the needs of folks experiencing the trauma of homelessness.

What We Need

We will be explicitly raising money for a program within the organization called the Safe-Keeping program. This program is implemented to prevent families from becoming homeless by supporting them through rental assistance and other diversion maneuvers.

At this time in Knoxville, it costs roughly $275 per child to prevent a family from experiencing homelessness. The organization will put the money we raise into the Safe-Keeping Program, which will benefit many families struggling to keep their homes.

The Safe Keeping Program is critical because over 40% of Americans are only a $400 expense away from experiencing homelessness. Our goal is to raise 1,100 dollars which will go directly into the Safekeeping Program and could be helping several families.

How It Helps

When a family does not have a stable shelter, they can become subject to mental health issues, starvation, substance abuse, and victimization. Donating to the Family Promise Safe-Keeping program can help prevent a family from losing their home. If you decide to donate your money to help these families, you are not only sheltering them, but you are allowing them to pursue a new life that they were unable to before.

How Else You Can Help

If you cannot donate to this campaign today, there are still many ways to contribute to this cause. First, you can share our campaign page with friends and colleagues. If you would like to donate your time, volunteering is a great way to get involved.

Organizing a supply drive, serving meals, and assisting with fundraising events are great ways to help. Another way to contribute is by donating items such as toiletries, books, office supplies, and other small necessities. Lastly, you can always show support by following Family Promise of Knoxville on Facebook.

To find out more information, contact the organization.