The Restoration House – June 2017

Volunteers don’t get paid, not because they’re worthless, but because they’re priceless.

  ~Sherry Anderson

Dear Reggie, 

Thank you for your interest in the volunteer opportunities and adventures at The Restoration House!  I am grateful for each individual, group and church who gives of their time, energy and talents to bless single mothers and their children.

– Lori Haskell

The Wonder Woman Team Behind Over The Edge

Are you familiar with our annual Over The Edge fundraiser? Over The Edge is an exciting new event in which participants rappel down the side of downtown Knoxville’s 12-story Langley Building. It’s the tallest, most thrilling fundraising event to ever hit Knoxville!

This year will be our 3rd Annual OTE event. What most people wouldn’t know is the amount of work, time and people it takes for us to pull off this large event year after year.  We’ll be honest, we just couldn’t have a successful event without hundreds of volunteers!  And, there is a small but mighty super team of volunteers who put in hundreds of hours over many months leading up to the event to plan every detail, work with the city and with the Langley Building on logistics, deal with vendors, and think through all of the things that wouldn’t cross most of our minds while we enjoy the live event.  

I’m thrilled to introduce you to Emily Nichaud, Kim Madgett, Tarah Bolas and Heather Story. These four women have created excel spreadsheets full of details and lists that are necessary for a successful OTE event.  They know who to call for porta potties, which city office will give clearance to block off streets and give access to electricity, and when to talk to the police and fire department. They have mapped out the street for vendors, kids events, bleachers, t-shirt booths, sign-in tables and the ever important landing pad for the rappellers.  This super team plans our VIP event for the evening before the big event, including food, tables and chairs and music.  And this team is up at the crack of dawn on both the VIP day and OTE event day hauling tables, setting up stations, running for last minute items and adapting plans to the many last minute changes that get thrown their way.  Then they will stay long after everyone else has gone home both days of the event making sure everything on their lists is taken care of and put away safely.  

These hard working super women haven’t taken on the most glamorous roles of our OTE event. Unless you’re looking for the women with the walkie talkies, most likely moving quickly through the crowd, you might not even see them.  But, without this group of wonder ladies, our event would fall apart!  So, if you do get a glimpse of any of these wonder women of OTE,  thank them for the time they invest in OTE and tell them you appreciate their hard work!  We feel it’s only fitting that a team of wonder women is leading the efforts in a fundraiser that benefits our single mother families!