South Knoxville Alliance

The following excellent proposals have been selected to present at our April 17th SOUP dinner.

The dinner will be held at Dara's Garden, 2637 Maryville Pike [ map ].

Doors open at 6:00 PM and presentations start at 6:30. Come hear about these community projects and cast your vote for the people's choice! $5 (suggested donation) gets you Soup, Salad, and a VOTE!

1. Fly Fishing Club
   West View Elementary School/Tim McGrath
   I would like to start an after school fly fishing club at West View Elementary School. Fly Fishing is a recreational sport that is beneficial to students in many ways. Outdoor activities such as fly fishing promote a healthy lifestyle. Recent medical studies have shown that there is an increase in child obesity. As a recreational sport, fly fishing gets students outside and this can help to not only reduce obesity but also reduce stress, anxiety, and depression. Learning a sport such as fly fishing leads to increased confidence, improved creativity, and self-esteem. Fly fishing is a form of exercise for both the body and for the mind.
2. Roses on the Road!
   Random Acts of Flowers/Mandie Beeler
   Random Acts of Flowers is seeking financial support to purchase a new delivery van that will ensure our charitable mission continues while also enabling us to expand our reach in the East Tennessee healthcare community.
3. Sports Equipment for Community Center for People Affected by Disabilities
   East Tennessee Technology Access Center/Sarah Cole & Joel Simmons
   SPARK is a 6 month old program of East Tennessee Technology Access Center in south Knoxville. It meets 4 nights a week and works with adults affected by physical and intellectual disabilities. Through art, music, yoga, games, cooking, and other activities we work on social and life skills in a relaxed, fun environment. Every Tuesday is Tournament Tuesday where we work on social skills and team building through games. As it warms up outside, we're ready to take the program outdoors and looking to purchase sports equipment. On our wishlist is a basketball hoop, badminton and volleyball set, disc golf, croquet, and other outdoor games that can be easily adapted for a variety of disabilities.
4. More than a Village
   City of Refuge, Inc./Kyle Ford
   "It takes a village to raise a child." This old cliche may sound outdated and not fit the world we live in now, but there is a lot of truth in the fact that it takes a team of people supporting a family to make their home peaceful and children able to grow. This is even more true when the family is coping with trauma. We also believe that art and music make terrific tools to help a person cope with a hard life situation. Put these two together and Project: More than a Village is what you get! Project: More than a Village connects at least five creatives (artists, musicians, and makers) with a family coping with trauma (foster care, adoption, at-risk) to build a support system for them and teach artistic coping skills the family can use to stay strong and together. This support system would provide mentorship, workshops, songs/art/maker products to encourage the family, respites for the parent(s), and concerts to bring about community within the support system.

A huge THANKS to all our sponsors and those who contributed to help make our SOUP dinners a success. Please help us thank our supporters with YOUR support of their business!

We especially thank Dara's Garden for providing the event location and food!