Convoy of Hope delivery set Saturday

Heather Mullinix, Crossville Chronicle, Tenn.
·2 min read

Aug. 25—Churches, volunteers, businesses and more are coming together this weekend to show Cumberland County some love and kindness when the Convoy of Hope rolls into town.

The Convoy of Hope will be at the Cumberland County Community Complex, 1398 Livingston Rd., beginning at 10 a.m. and ending at 2 p.m.

Jason Sitton, who is handling public relations for the event, said more than four thousands of people are expected to attend. "We'll have 35,000 pounds of non-perishable food, 1,400 pairs of children's shoes, more than 20 barbers and stylists, medical, dental, veterans services, job services, nutrition information and a kids bounce house," Sitton said. "It's going to be like nothing we've seen before."

More than 20 area churches have come together to support Convoy of Hope, Sitton said. No identification is necessary. Everyone is welcome.

At the end, Sitton said participants would be asked to register so that area churches can include them in prayers and reach out in the future.

"The goal is to connect people to a church family," Sitton said. "We want to show people love."

Convoy of Hope is a faith-based humanitarian organization focused on feeding programs, disaster response services, rural initiatives and humanitarian relief in areas impacted by war.

The organization has provided more than $1.69 billion in food and supplies to communities around the world and served more than 582 million meals since forming in 1994.

Convoy of Hope visited Cookeville in 2018, and local faith leaders took note. They were working on bringing the Convoy to Cumberland County in 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic halted community events around the country.

When the organization began making plans to restart its community events, Sitton said Cumberland County stepped up.

Meetings began in April for the August event. Volunteers, donors and others have been recruited, though there is still opportunities to help.

Visit convoyofhope.org/events/cumberlandcounty to sign up as a volunteer.

Financial support is also welcome. Checks should be made payable to Convoy of Hope Cumberland County and mailed to 1640 W. Ave., Crossville, TN 38555.

Heather Mullinix is editor of the Crossville Chronicle. She covers schools and education in Cumberland County. She may be reached at hmullinix@crossville-chronicle.com.