Shopper Blog: New bookkeeping business lets small business owners focus on their craft

POWELL

New bookkeeping business lets small business owners focus on their craft

Al Lesar, Shopper News

Karen Stone has been a professional photographer for the past eight years, but business has tailed off lately. As people struggle with the increased cost of life's essentials, they have less money to spend on a luxury service like photography.

Understanding the struggles facing small businesses, the Powell resident has launched Delicate Balance Bookkeeping, a resource to help small business owners deal with day-to-day finances without adding staff.

She's like a freelance money person, so to speak.

“I wish I had someone like me for my photo business,” Stone said. “When I take care of the books and make sure everything is balanced, it gives the owner the freedom to totally focus on their passion.

“If all I had to deal with was the photo end of the business, it would have been a lot more fun.”

She studied photography, but bookkeeping runs in the family

Stone worked two years handling everything from payroll to accounts payable and accounts receivable for a law firm. She spent another two years working for a construction business.

“My mom was the bookkeeper at our church for years,” she said. “I’ve always been someone who enjoyed working with a budget. I’ve always been interested in finding ways to save money.”

But after having her children (now ages 8 and 9), she looked for something more flexible. The 2001 Farragut High School grad turned to photography, which she majored in at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.

Today, the primary focus for Karen Stone Photography is families and newborns. And while number crunching has been a big part of her life, starting Delicate Balance Bookkeeping doesn't mean she is ready to completely give up photography.

Snapping photos, crunching numbers are both important

Stone still recognizes the importance of preserving life's special moments.

“Every photograph gives people memories for years and years to come,” Stone said. “I lost my dad in 2020. There are only so many photos that were taken of him, and there will never be another one. We can’t get that time back.

“And it’s not just the portraits, it’s the candid photos that show the emotion. It allows us to remember what they were feeling at the time."

It's hard to get that poetic about bookkeeping, but Stone still enjoys it.

“It’s in my personality to be orderly," she said. "Everything has its place, and I want to make sure I put it there.”

For more information, visit delicatebalance.co or email Stone at: karen@delicatebalance.co.

NORTH KNOXVILLE

Cattywampus Puppet Council Fall Ball last weekend

Carol Z. Shane, Shopper News

The Cattywampus Puppet Council – Knoxville’s community-based arts nonprofit now in its eighth year – invited all to celebrate at its Fall Ball, happening last weekend at the Old City Performing Arts Center.

This festive evening, complete with music, dancing, refreshments, a silent auction and signature giant puppets, aimed to raise $35,000 to support the organization’s 2024 initiatives, highlighting the magic of community-driven art and puppetry.

If you’ve been to any street event in Knoxville, you’ve seen the Cattywampus Puppet Council. They’re easily recognizable with their colorful oversized figures of animals – including insects and water creatures – fanciful characters and luminaries such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Dolly Parton. Recognized for their impactful events and interactive parades in communities across East Tennessee and the South, they’ve collaborated with renowned artists like Yo-Yo Ma as part of the “Our Common Nature” concert in May.

They have become an integral presence at numerous community events, including the 7th Annual Parade & Street Party – a hallmark event featuring giant puppets, masks and costumes; Parade Youth Art Residencies – 10 sponsored, free afterschool programs where students, guided by mentors, craft unique parade art for display at the annual parade; and Youth Intern Squad – an initiative each winter/spring offering local high school students valuable paid experiences and leadership skills in the realm of art education.

Cattywampus’ spirit of fostering community unity includes music whenever possible. The 50-member band Knox Honkers & Bangers, who played at the fundraiser, celebrate the ethos that everyone can be an artist. They’ve also performed at events such as Big Ears and the Dogwood Arts Festival.

Rachel Milford, executive director of Cattywampus Puppet Council, said, “the Fall Ball is not only a fundraiser but also a celebration of eight years of enriching Knoxville through people-powered art. Guests are invited to be [as] imaginative as they wish with their Ball attire, from duct tape tuxedos to butterfly wings, or simply come as you are.”

In addition to Knox Honkers & Bangers, the music included a vintage vinyl Halloween DJ set from Xerox the Kidd.

“Cattywampus is more than just an organization; it’s a movement,” said Milford. “It’s about harnessing the power of art to build bridges, tell stories and create futures together. While we’ve accomplished so much on a shoestring budget over the years, the time has come to lay the foundation for our future. This Fall Ball is an opportunity for the community to come together and support that vision.”

The event’s sponsors included the Old City Performing Arts Center, the Casual Pint, Crafty Bastard Brewery, Wild Love Bakehouse and Three Rivers Market.

The Cattywampus Puppet Council’s Fall Ball happened from 7-10 p.m. last Saturday, Oct. 21, at The Old City Performing Arts Center at 111 State St. Information can be found at www.bit.ly/cattywampusfallball.

NORTH KNOXVILLE

The 45th annual Fall Apple Festival featured flavors of the season and fun for the family

Joeleen Hubbard, Shopper News

Many grabbed a cozy sweater and got ready to enjoy a day of fall-themed fun on Oct. 21 when Washington Presbyterian Church hosted its 45th annual Fall Apple Festival in Corryton.

The Fall Apple Festival took place 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and featured live music, crafts and other family-friendly activities. The event also had yummy treats available for purchase, including fried apple pies, fresh-pressed apple cider and homemade apple butter.

Washington Presbyterian Church hosted its first Fall Apple Festival in 1978 to raise money for a local boy’s home. Since then, the church has continued to host the event and raise money for local organizations every year.

This year, the church is donated proceeds to Living Waters for the World, Wesley House Community Center and the Morgan-Scott Project.

As the festival continues to grow, the church continues to adapt to rising attendance. The festival is now hosted on nine acres of land across from Washington Presbyterian Church.

The church raised more than $43,000 hosting the festival last year and expects to have 2,000 attendees or more this year.

Arrive early, bring cash and wear good shoes

Due to the event's popularity, organizers encouraged people to come early so they can take part in all the activities.

“We plan and prepare as much as we can,” organizer Ann Smith Bowen said. “But you know, things do run out towards the end of the day. So, if they really want that apple butter or they really want that cider or a fried pie, I encourage people come early.”

Activities were spread out throughout the grounds, so attendees were encouraged to wear comfortable walking shoes.

“It's just a really special occasion,” Bowen said. “We have people that come from Kentucky, North Carolina and from all over because they want to come and be a part of the festival. Then, people will be at Apple Festival and they'll see someone that they went to high school with 15 years ago. …

"There are all kinds of special things like that that occur.”

Joeleen Hubbard; joeleenhubbard@gmail.com; (865) 591-8893

FARRAGUT

Farragut High graduate earns national honor as researcher on health disparities

Nancy Anderson, Shopper News

Dr. Monica Peek, a 1987 graduate of Farragut High School who now lives in Chicago, was inducted into the class of 2022 National Academy of Medicine on Oct. 7.

Each year 100 notable physicians (out of 1,000 or more nominees) are inducted into academy about a year after nomination. The academy membership is generally for life.

The academy is a 501(c)(3) organization charged with advising the federal government about cutting-edge health-related issues such as COVID-19. The Centers for Disease Control used its reports to develop vaccine allocation policies. There are about 2,200 members.

Peek describes the academy as an honor society and service organization.

“It’s a huge honor to be accepted because very few people are. It’s the highlight of my career to be inducted into the National Academy.

“Mostly, it’s a service organization so when you are inducted, you work. As soon as I was inducted, I joined a committee working on health disparity, unequal treatment.

“The goal of NAM is to have people who are service minded and interested in issues of the day. You have to be knowledgeable in your field and have a willingness to serve humanity to try and tackle problems in service of the greater good.”

Inductees are said to be the top 100 in their field whether they be physicians, social scientists or chemists, etc.

Peek is in rarified air. Two of the 100 in the class of 2022 won the Nobel Prize just weeks ago. They did research on ribonucleic acid, allowing Pfizer and Moderna pharmaceutical companies to develop COVID-19 vaccines used around the world.

Peek researches issues with health equity with minorities to understand how they might live as long and as healthily as the average American.

“Right now, Black Americans have a higher rate of chronic diseases. They are more likely to die from firearm violence and have a generally shorter life span. I research why this is the case and try to develop interventions, specifically around diabetes,” she said.

“There are a lot of factors that go into health disparities or health equity. Clinically, I’m a primary care physician, but I spend most of my time doing research on these factors.”

She said she moved to Chicago in October of 2001 after having visited.

“I always enjoyed Chicago, but I only visited in the summer. I moved there in October and by February I thought I had made a terrible mistake. It snowed in April, and it was almost June with snow still on the ground. Finally, I got the right boots, hat and coat and I knew I could do this. It’s a great city with a lot of history, diversity, and culture.”

Peek earned her B.S. degree in biology from Vanderbilt University in 1991. She went to Johns Hopkins in Baltimore for her master’s of public health in 1995 and earned her medical degree in 1996. She completed her internship and residency at Stanford University Medical Center in Palo Alto, California.

BEARDEN

Old BarberMcMurry office small in size but big in Knoxville history

John Shearer, Shopper News

New buildings might be coming to the Strip area along Cumberland Avenue, but just a few feet west under the Alcoa Highway overpass off Kingston Pike, the old is still quite noticeable on the north side.

And that includes the building at 2505 Kingston Pike next to an Alcoa Highway exit ramp. Around since shortly after World War II, the structure is small in size but big in Knoxville’s history. It was here where the large BarberMcMurry architectural firm had its offices for more than four decades and where esteemed Knoxville architect Charles Barber practiced for nearly the last 15 years of his life.

The two-story building now has a Re/Max Preferred Properties banner hanging over its front face, and it has become an agents’ office on the top floor. “It’s an easy location to get to. You just hop off I-40,” said Vivienne Rolfe of Re/Max in explaining its appeal.

This building where plans for many buildings around Knoxville were once drawn has had its own planned use redone in recent years. Bart Mitchell of Coldwell Banker Commercial said that the facility had been used by Childhelp Inc. for several years until his firm bought it about three years ago.

Coldwell Banker Commercial was looking to lease the structure during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, but a North Carolina family gave them a generous offer to buy it, so it was sold in 2021, he said.

Despite the brick rectangular building’s somewhat modest exterior with some almost-craftsman-style cornice brackets added after BarberMcMurry vacated it, Mitchell said it is an interesting building. He said it features two courtyards and plenty of lighting from high windows in one area. “It was a unique and beautiful building,” he said.

A look at some old city directories at the McClung Historical Collection shows that the building was built and first used as the offices for BarberMcMurry in 1948-49. Before that, the firm − started by Charles Barber, cousin David W. Barber and Ben McMurry in 1915 − was at 517½ Church Ave., in the block where the Hilton hotel now is.

Current BarberMcMurry President and CEO Chuck Griffin remembers the Kingston Pike building well. “I started my career in that building when I was a student intern in 1983,” he said. “It was in a great location, as it was in close proximity to our largest client at the time, the University of Tennessee. Over time, the location also provided easy access to Interstate 40/75, which allowed us easy access to other project sites throughout East Tennessee.”

He also recalled that the building has been expanded over time, with an addition incorporating the previously mentioned windows for natural daylighting. “The firm grew to a point where some of us had to work in the basement. They called us the Dungeonites. That was not the ideal work environment,” he joked.

Griffin said the growing firm also had parking challenges there, including on days when the Ossoli Circle club next door would meet, so they designed and built the new office building at 623 Lindsay Place a few blocks west in 1989.

“We were renting the old building from Mrs. McMurry. We eventually purchased the building from her, then sold it in order to afford purchasing the property for the new building,” he said.

After being at Lindsay Place for more than two decades, the firm in 2013 moved to its current location at 505 Market St. by Market Square. The Kingston Pike building was vacant for several years until Childhelp began occupying it about 1996, the city directories say. It also later moved into the Lindsay Place building.

Founder Charles Barber’s early works as the lead architect include a number of large homes in the Sequoyah Hills area, and such University of Tennessee buildings as Hoskins Library. He also designed the Ossoli Circle building and such churches as the former First Christian Church. He was the co-designer of Church Street United Methodist Church with John Russell Pope of New York.

While inside this Kingston Pike building, Barber and his firm were involved in the design of such projects as the now-razed UT University Center.

He had moved to a unique home he designed at 2514 Alcoa Highway in the 1930s, He died in June 1962 after being slowed by a heart attack. His wife, Blanche, was a teacher at South Knoxville Elementary about the time of his death.

Charles Barber’s legacy continues today with all his works still standing, including the Kingston Pike building he helped create.

NORTH KNOXVILLE

Royal Bark steps up for Knox Vintage Pet Project

Carol Z. Shane, Shopper News

On a recent Sunday in beautiful fall weather, the Royal Bark Social Club (RBSC) doggie daycare held a fundraiser benefiting Knox Vintage Pet Project (KVPP).

“Vintage?” Yes, indeed. The KVPP’s mission, according to its website, is “to provide quality of life for homeless seniors and special needs animals in the Knoxville area.”

Ashley Schneider, the office manager at People Promoting Animal Welfare in Greenback, has an animal shelter background and has fostered connections with other East Tennessee shelters along the way. She noticed that senior and special needs dogs were the hardest to adopt out, due to treatment expenses. Schneider says she “unofficially” started KVPP in December 2021.

“I started independently pulling seniors from shelters and paying for their vetting myself. Many of my friends on Facebook saw what I was doing and wanted to donate to their care so I decided to go the nonprofit route to make their donations go farther. I got my 501(c)3 in May of 2022.” Once the shelters learned what she was doing, they started reaching out.

Meanwhile, Alisa Hamby of the RBSC had come to know a very special client: Mighty Max, an elderly dachshund who suffers from intervertebral disc disease (IVDD) and needs wheels to get around.

“We fell in love with Mighty Max,” said Hamby. “We wanted to do a fundraiser in honor of him.”

At a Chain-Free Knoxville fundraiser, Hamby met Romeo Pesky, also with IVDD. Hamby’s pal Cassie Krause runs Cassie Leigh Photography and had photographed Romeo and his human “mom.” When Krause reached out to Hamby with news of Romeo’s passing, Hamby decided to do a fundraiser for Mighty Max’s birthday and in honor of Romeo Pesky.

“I had to find the right rescue for this project because it was seniors and special needs," Hamby said. "In talking with Cassie she told me about KVPP. I’d never heard of them before. I reached out to Ashley.”

“A Mother Puppin’ Birthday Pawty” was born.

Merchants of Beer, which has been a great friend to the Royal Bark-ers, offered its place for the party. Hamby was thrilled with the turnout. “It was a beautiful day; the weather was perfect.” The Old City Association’s Oktoberfest was also in full swing, so some of that crowd visited, too.

Among the KVPP supporters was a very special guest – LaTrell Bumphus, a former Vol who used to board his dog with the RBSC. He’s now a defensive end for the Seattle Seahawks and still as big of a dog lover as ever. Bumphus signed a football for the silent auction, autographed pictures and helped take donations.

Sponsors and vendors included Dog Friendly Knoxville, 865 Life, North Star K-9 Training, Animal Wellness and Rehabilitation Center, Bliss, Downtown Smooth Spa, Pretentious Beer Co. Kim Martinez, wife of Vols coach Willie Martinez, donated two tickets to the UConn game. “And the magnificent thing is we raised $2,000,” said Hamby. “It’s our record. I don’t think we’ve done that before. It was huge. It was amazing.”

Visit knoxvintagepets.wordpress.com/ and facebook.com/knoxvintagepets/

POWELL

Softball pro teaches in Powell, helps train UT athletes in life

Al Lesar, Shopper News

While a softball player at Texas Tech, Yvonne Whaley took the opportunity to make things better for other student-athletes.

“I worked closely with athlete development programs,” Whaley said. “I was able to see some changes made.”

One of the most significant improvements was providing more mental health resources for athletes. It went from two trained professionals on staff to six, creating many more opportunities for help.

“It gave me a perspective,” said Whaley. “I learned how important it is to know the right people to get something done.”

She is using those experiences to help her on the other side now. Whaley recently started a job with the University of Tennessee’s Student-Athlete Development Office. She is a liaison between the athletes and the people who can make a difference.

The new job comes right after she played for Oklahoma City in the second season of the four-team Women’s Professional Fastpitch League.

In this offseason, Whaley is keeping her skills sharp by offering lessons at Base Knox Athletics (914 Callahan Drive) in Powell.

Proud Pitt woman

After three years at Texas Tech, where she made Academic All-Big 12 two years (while pursuing a degree in psychology), Whaley transferred to Pitt. The shortstop hit .344 and struck out just 11 times in 131 at-bats and made third-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference.

Those numbers allowed her to be selected in the sixth round of the pro draft.

“I wasn’t really happy (after three years at Texas Tech),” Whaley said. “I knew someone who knew the Pitt coaches and it worked out great.

“It was a little different, since I had been in Texas all my life (she grew up in Houston), but I’ll be a proud Pitt woman the rest of my life.”

The professional league, which runs from early June to mid-August, was another adjustment for Whaley. The average salary is about $6,000, which is somewhat comparable to what minor league baseball players are paid.

“Coaching was different (in the pros) from college,” Whaley said. “There wasn’t as much help. They let us play. I learned that I just had to trust myself.”

Whaley said her batting average dipped (from her college days) to about .260.

“In college, my day was always planned out for me,” she said. “(In the pros) we were on our own.”

Autonomy is key

When Whaley works with a youngster in a lesson, her philosophy has a lot to do with “autonomy.”

“For years, I worked closely with a batting coach,” Whaley said. “He made me the player I am. I use a lot of his techniques to pass along.

“I put a lot of it on the player. I’m not going to be there every day. They have to know what to do in order to adjust to a certain situation during a game, or even during an at-bat.”

Whaley has had experience working with youngsters. During some college summers, she coached a 12U travel team.

Now, when she’s not teaching or playing the game, she’s focused on making life better for athletes at UT.

“I’ve been impressed with how well the athletes support each other,” Whaley said. “It’s a little different seeing that from my perspective, rather than that of an athlete.”

HARDIN VALLEY

The AeroHAWKS soaring on NASA’s Launch Challenge

Nancy Anderson, Shopper News

In only their second year in existence, the AeroHAWKS rocketry club at Hardin Valley Academy is taking student aeronautics competitions by storm. They are state and national champions and earned fourth in the world at the International Rocketry Challenge in Paris, France, earlier this year.

Junior Bailey Mounts is one of four girls on the about 22-member aeronautics club, divided into three teams and sponsored by engineering teacher Tim Smyrl. She explains that the aeronautics club competes with rockets, planes and drones. The idea is to perform a function such as carry an egg or dump water on a target.

Mounts is the student manager for the NASA Launch Challenge. She describes the club, saying “AeroHAWKS is a second year engineering-based program that has competed in four STEM-based competitions using plane, drone, or rocket. Out of all of them we came in top six.

“We are fourth in the world in rocketry, second and third for heavy lift radio-controlled planes, and sixth for search and rescue drones.”

The students research, build and fly their soaring works of wonder.

Their challenges aren’t over. The team is the only Tennessee high school team invited to participate in NASA’s Student Launch Challenge. Students vie for a simulated NASA contract. It’s a nine-month challenge for student teams from across the nation to design, build, test and launch a high-powered rocket carrying a scientific or engineering payload.

They plan to deploy a small drone that will fly itself on a mapping mission similar to the Curiosity mapping Mars. The competition culminates with a final big launch in April 2024 in Huntsville, Alabama, home of NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center.

“I created a similar club in Georgia and thought it would be perfect for Hardin Valley,” Smyrl said. “I put it together in a short amount of time in August 2022 with about 11 students. We’ve doubled in size since then. The club is an academic competition team (that) the kids can letter in just like any sport.

“The Academy of Model Aeronautics has a couple of contests we’ll be doing this year. The ‘Heavy Lift’ (is) where we’ll carry a water payload in a radio-controlled airplane similar to what the firefighters do. The heaviest that can be released mechanically wins.

“All the kids are doing the American Rocketry Challenge, and just a few are doing the NASA challenge. It’s intense, time consuming, and costly.”

Each student in the club pays $90, which doesn’t cover all the expenses. The club invites area business to become corporate sponsors.

“We’ve done well and now we need corporate sponsorship to grow the program into a sustainable entity. This is one great opportunity for kids to find out what sets them on fire,” said Smyrl.

To become a corporate sponsor, email timothy.smyrl@knoxschools.org.

NORTH KNOXVILLE

Museum of Art and Maker City: Welcoming the newcomers

Carol Z. Shane, Shopper News

The Knoxville Museum of Art recently welcomed new members to its board of trustees, which helps to set policy, ensure funding, and oversee management of the museum.

Joining the board for three-year terms are: Scott Bird, partner and chief operating officer, MoxCar Marketing + Communications; Judy Doyle, KMA Guild co-chair; Rob Heller, CEO, Centeur LLC; Kay and Larry Leibowitz, community volunteers; Susana Navarro, president and CEO, Navarro Inc.; and Gail Van Hoozier, KMA Guild co-chair.

In addition, the museum has expanded, enhanced, reimagined and relocated “Higher Ground: A Century of the Visual Arts in East Tennessee,” the KMA’s flagship permanent exhibition.

“The reopening of ‘Higher Ground’ in newly refurbished, larger galleries represents a big milestone in the museum’s history,” said KMA executive director David Butler. “As the world’s only ongoing display devoted to the art history of East Tennessee, it has been enthusiastically embraced by our community, who can see themselves represented in it. We’re pleased that we can now show more of the quality and diversity of our region’s rich visual arts legacy.”

“It’s an exciting time for the Knoxville Museum of Art,” said board chair Taylor Wortham. “We appreciate the dedication of time and talent from all of our committed board members and volunteers.”

On Nov. 8, The Maker City (TMC), in collaboration with The Arts and Culture Alliance (ACA), invites artists, makers and creatives seeking to take their craft to new heights to a transformative event − the Resource Fair with Knoxville’s Arts and Creative Business Organizations.

Knoxville was designated “The Maker City” in 2016 by Mayor Madeline Rogero under the leadership and fiscal agency of the Knoxville Entrepreneur Center and the oversight of the Mayor’s Maker Council. The resource fair is designed for anyone interested in learning about grants, getting their work showcased in exhibitions and markets, growing or launching a creative business, finding the perfect space to create, or simply connecting with like-minded individuals to build a supportive community.

“Navigating the creative landscape can be overwhelming,” said Courtney Hendricks, director of maker initiatives at TMC. “Whether you’re a seasoned creative or just starting out, this event is here to help guide you in the right direction.”

Highlights include educational and professional networking, a casual and conversational setting, and a diverse artistic spectrum representing the richness of Knoxville’s arts scene. The participating organizations cover many facets of the arts, ensuring that attendees find the support they need, regardless of their creative pursuits.

In addition to TMC and ACA, those organizations include the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, Dogwood Arts and Maker Exchange,  Knox Makers, Pathway Lending, Real Good Kitchen and The Knoxville Chamber.

Admission is free.

WHAT : new installation of “Higher Ground, A Century of the Visual Arts in East Tennessee” WHEN: opens 10 a.m. Nov. 3. The public is invited to a special opening celebration and reception 5:30-7:30 p.m. the same day. COST: There will be a cash bar. WHERE: Knoxville Museum of Art, 1050 World’s Fair Park Drive INFO: knoxart.org.

WHAT: Resource Fair with Knoxville’s Arts and Creative Business Organizations WHEN: 6:30-8:30 p.m. Nov. 8 WHERE: Emporium Center, 100 S. Gay St. COST: FreeINFO: themakercity.org and @themakercity on Instagram.

OPINION

Connecting with mom in a year of mourning

Leslie Snow, Shopper News

It’s a question people ask, a way of showing concern and checking on my family. “How’s your mom doing?” they inquire, casually, while I’m checking out at the grocery store or buying dog food for Buttercup. I always stumble over my answer.

Maybe it’s because I’m not really sure how my mom is doing. She keeps her emotions tucked in and hidden tightly. I have to ask the right question, in just the right way, at the perfect moment to get her to share her feelings. Or maybe I struggle with the question because the answer is obvious. My mother is quietly coping.

In her own muted way, she’s still processing all the changes in her life since my dad passed away last February. I know she’s actively mourning his death in ways I can’t always see. But I know.

I know because his sweatshirts and jeans still hang neatly on their hangers. His size-13 shoes with the Velcro closures still sit on the closet floor. If my father were to suddenly reappear at the doorway one day, his life would be waiting for him. Exactly as he left it.

My dad’s death has left a hole in my mom’s life that I cannot fill, no matter how hard I try. I see her almost every day. We share meals together three times a week. She sees my sister’s family a couple nights a week, too, and spends time with her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. We are attentive to her needs. We do our best to fill the solitary spaces in her life.

Evenings are the toughest. After dinner at our house, after I drive her home, I feel the emptiness she lives with. This is the first time my mother has ever lived alone in a year full of firsts without my father.

But a few months ago, when I asked about her evening, she sounded a little lighter. “It was good,” she said with a mysterious laugh. “I watched TV with Robin.” I laughed too, a little confused at first.

“You watched TV with my sister, Robin?” I asked, trying to sort out the details. “The one who lives in Virginia Beach?”

“Yes,” she responded, “that Robin. She called me after dinner, and we picked out a show to stream together. Then we hit ‘start’ at the exact same time and hung up to watch.”

I laughed at first. I thought it was a one-time event designed to help my mother get through a particularly lonely time. But since that first evening, my mother and Robin have watched television together nearly every night.

It’s been a treat for my mom and a way for my sister to stay connected. Now when I call my mother and ask about her evening, she tells me about whatever show she and Robin are watching. She looks forward to their time together and has even learned to navigate the different streaming services.

“It’s such a little thing,” Robin said, when I spoke to her the other day. “We just talk a little before the show and a few minutes afterward. When we finish one series, we have fun picking out the next.”

But in a year of mourning, little things mean a lot. And on those days when I can’t spend as much time with my mother as I’d like, it’s nice to know that at the end of the day she’s cuddled on the couch with her two cats, watching "Gilmore Girls" with her daughter.

Leslie Snow may be reached at snow column@aol.com.

EAST KNOXVILLE

Ground broken in East Knoxville on new community gardens

Carol Z. Shane, Shopper News

The issue of food insecurity in East Knoxville continues to be addressed proactively, thanks to the efforts of Knox County Community Gardens & Growers Alliance.

On Oct. 14 and 15, representatives from Alliance member organizations, along with friends and supporters, gathered for two landmark events.

Christopher Battle, the former minister whose Battlefield Farms & Gardens literally grew out of his 2018 “gleaning fence” at Tabernacle Baptist, presided at the Saturday groundbreaking for the “concrete garden” at 107 Chestnut St. It’ll be finished the end of October, with beds available for adoption early next year.

“That’s going to attract people,” said Denzel Grant, founder and executive director of Turn Up KNOX, a nonprofit that seeks to reduce gun violence and support families of its victims.

The following day, a ribbon-cutting was held for the Payne Avenue Community Garden, adjacent to Payne Avenue Baptist Church on Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue. The largest community church garden within this historical Black community, it now has 36 garden beds, with plans to have 100 by its completion. The garden is less than a year old and thriving.

“It’s an example of what a flourishing garden can look like in the community,” said Battle. “It’s got all this beauty, all this food in a community that is plagued with gun violence, drugs and the whole shebang. Yet we’ve got this beautiful place where people can come, garden and find peace and serenity, as well as have fresh produce. They can grow here what they maybe can’t afford at the grocery store.”

Battle is executive director for the community gardens alliance.

Also celebrating the garden’s opening were Master Gardener Caesar Stair III and Femeika Elliott, since September the chief of operations at the alliance. The two met at last year’s “Unite for Change Food Security Social Hackathon” presented by the United Way of Greater Knoxville. Stair, a hands-on volunteer with the alliance, approached Elliott and said he’d been waiting for someone to show up in order to fulfill the vision of the organization, and she was that person.

Elliott not only remakes soul food into healthy versions with her business Meik Meals, she is also the founder of Rooted East Knoxville Collective and a passionate advocate for food-based healing and wellness.

“You won’t find a finer person, with more integrity, dedicated and committed to her goal of trying to help this community,” said Stair. “She values each individual person and knows that they can grow their own vegetables and in effect, as Chris says, ‘be free.’”

Elliott said, “My role is to bridge the gap of communications in resource allocation between agriculturists, community gardens, food justice organizations, independent growers and others involved in food systems in our great city of Knoxville.” One of her biggest contributions so far has been optimizing the organization’s social media presence, in turn bringing fresh energy and making the alliance more multigenerational.

“Whatever your capacity is within the food system of Knox County, we want more members,” Elliott said. “When people come to the (alliance) website, they can register their organization for free, find out where community gardens are operating, what independent growers are where. It’s an all-stop shop for all things food systems.”

Visit knoxgardenalliance.org.

POWELL

Morning Pointe brings back memories and helps create new ones for senior residents

Al Lesar, Shopper News

There’s a secret ingredient in Cleo Wayman’s peanut butter pie she won't be divulging any time soon.

As a resident of Morning Pointe Senior Living in Powell, she relied on a recipe from her younger years for the facility's friendly baking competition last month, which featured two residents and six families of residents.

“I’m trying to let our residents experience as many fond memories as I can,” said Beverly Smith, life enrichment director at the Powell location. “We try to base our activities on that.”

Once a month, Smith and her staff develop and plan an activity for residents and families, giving everyone an opportunity to enjoy a positive experience together.

Smith's relationship with Morning Pointe is personal

Smith, a Powell resident, was sold on Morning Pointe’s mission long before she was an employee.

“My father was here for three years before he passed,” said Smith, a home-school teacher who hadn’t worked outside the home in 25 years. “He liked his sweets. A month after he passed, I brought doughnuts for the staff. I was fine until I got to the nurses station, then I burst into tears.

“I had been surprised to hear how much the staff enjoyed my dad. I just thought of him as pretty cranky.”

A year passed before she returned to the facility. She came as a volunteer and fit in perfectly. From her volunteer status, she was hired to her current position, which she has held for three years.

“Everything I had done in home-schooling my children translated well into this job,” she said. “It takes planning and some creativity.”

Helping Morning Pointe residents share their voice

Just as Smith was settling into her role, the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Senior living facilities were significantly affected by restrictions on personal contact.

At Morning Pointe, the response was simple. The residents wanted to sing.

“There wasn’t a lot of music around here, and the residents missed it,” Smith said. “A few of the residents said they had been in a choir and would really like to get one going.”

Smith wasn’t a singer and didn’t know much about getting a choir together, but she was willing to learn. With the help of a couple residents with choir backgrounds, she got the ball rolling in January 2021.

Seventeen residents worked hard to enter the Seniors Got Talent competition at the Bijou Theatre. Their rendition of “Bye Bye Love" made popular by Knoxville’s own The Everly Brothers didn’t win, but it sent them on their way as performers.

Since then, they have entertained for various holidays and special events all around East Tennessee.

For Smith, she has gained more from these experiences than she has invested.

“People don’t realize what they could get out of spending time with this generation,” Smith said. “The wisdom and experiences they have are so special.”

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WEST KNOXVILLE

Beaver Creek Kayak Club's mission keeps growing

Nancy Anderson, Shopper News

“What a great weekend to be a member of Beaver Creek Kayak Club,” said President Charlie Austin. Members of BCKC were busy Beavers in Karns on Oct. 7.

The group started the day early with the annual fall cleanup of Roy Arthur Storm Water Park, Beaver Creek stream beds, and all of Harrell Road. They collected 13 large bags of trash weighing about 40 pounds each. That's a reduction from years past.

“I believe we are making a difference in the community," Austin said. "There’s still a lot of trash to be picked up, but not as much as in the past. There was less trash out there this fall, although we were surprised to find car parts in the creek.

“When we first started the cleanup about six years ago, we had 40 to 50 bags of trash. So that just shows that the BCKC efforts to 'Clear, Clean, and Care For' Beaver Creek are working,” Austin said.

The day ended with the third annual BCKC No-Yak event held at Creekside food truck park on 6729 Malone Creek Drive, where more than 40 members gathered for dinner and fireside chats about the future.

Creekside welcomed the group with signature cocktails with names such as “Log Jam,” “the Beev,” and “Charlie’s Launch.”

“The No-Yak event is a chance to celebrate the end of the season. Our season here is very long because we have good weather, but most people don’t float the Creek beyond October," Austin said. "We just wanted to get together and talk about everything we’ve accomplished this year and goals we hope to accomplish in the future. It’s just us hanging out together and you don’t have to bring a kayak. It’s only fitting that we have the end-of-the-year event at Creekside."

BCKC plans to expand the idea of caring for Beaver Creek outside the Karns and Powell into Halls, Hardin Valley and Solway. Clayton Park in Halls will eventually be the beginning of the 44-mile water trail.

The club plans to adopt and clean any road that crosses Beaver Creek from Clayton Park to Melton Hill Lake and place a new dock at the Karns Rugby Park.

They have a goal of installing 11 launches along Beaver Creek. So far, there are six.

“The progress we’ve made proves that a civic organization and the government can work together in harmony. We don’t always have to be out for blood. (Knox County) Commission Chair Terry Hill is a great support and we were pleased to have her at the No-Yak event. This just proves that we can work together to pull a big project off.”

The busy weekend didn’t end there. The group gathered for a kayak float on Melton Hill Lake Oct. 8.

Info: Find Beaver Creek Kayak Club on Facebook

OPINION

War seems closer to home when you know the people fighting it |

Leslie Snow, Shopper News

It was the summer of 2011. Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros were singing about home, and I was driving an SUV full of Israeli teenagers to Walmart for a uniquely American experience. The kids wanted to see what it was like to live in the land of plenty. They wanted to buy jeans and T-shirts, sugary American snacks, and electronics to bring home to their families. I watched in amazement as they wandered through the store gleefully, as if they had landed in some magical kingdom full of wonders.

The teenagers, all 15 at the time, were part of a community service exchange program offered through the Knoxville Jewish Alliance. The camp’s name, “Tikkun Olam,” means “repair the world." It’s a concept in Judaism that compels followers to go out in the world and do as much good as possible. The summer my youngest son, Ethan, participated, a shy boy named Sahar stayed with us for two weeks. He worked in our community, then the two boys boarded a plane for Israel where Ethan stayed with Sahar's family.

I remember how uncomfortable Sahar seemed when he arrived at our house, his big green eyes taking in our big American home, our green backyard, and our giant dog. I hugged him awkwardly and asked what he wanted to eat for dinner. His face brightened. “I’d like to try a cheeseburger,” he said, shyly. “If it’s not too much trouble.”

The cheeseburger was the icebreaker and things got easier after that. He and Ethan bonded over typical teenage boy things. They played video games and yelled at the TV. They stayed up late talking, went swimming, and hung out at the lake.

Some days, the other exchange students would wind up at our house, too. I remember blowing up air mattresses, unrolling sleeping bags, and popping countless bags of popcorn just to listen to the sounds of laughter coming from my basement.

“It’s amazing,” I remember saying to my husband one night when the kids were sitting around a bonfire. “You can bring teenagers together from different cultures and different parts of the world and they seem to make an instant connection.” It was like that for Ethan and Sahar. They became fast friends after just one cheeseburger.

Last night, Ethan called to tell me he’d reached out to Sahar after the terrorist attacks in Israel. Sahar is 27 now and engaged to be married. He’s just been recalled to the Israeli army to fight Hamas terrorists hiding in Gaza. He said he doesn’t know if he’ll be fighting on the front lines, but he’ll find out soon.

I’ve been glued to my television these last few days, thinking about the unspeakable human suffering unfolding in the Middle East. I’ve seen tragedies play out on the news before, but this one has hit me particularly hard. It feels like 9/11 all over again. Maybe it’s a failure of human nature or a lack of imagination on my part, but war seems closer to home and more tragic when you know the people fighting it. It’s personal for me in ways that go beyond my Jewish faith.

I can’t stop thinking about Sahar, Tal, Sagi, and all the other Israeli students I met when my children participated in Camp Tikkun Olam. Teenagers who came into our home, sat around our dinner table, and became part of our family. Children, who joined together on a mission to repair the world and who are now young adults, fighting to save their homeland.

Leslie Snow may be reached at snowcolumn@aol.com

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Shopper News brings you the latest happenings in your community