A Tennessee State Representative, Operation Compassion and Lee University have partnered together in an initiative to provide blankets for needy families in Bradley County, Tennessee.
State Rep. Kevin Brooks, who works with Church of God Communications, called upon Lee University’s Leonard Center and Operation Compassion, an independent benevolent organization with roots in the Church of God, to help organize the blanket drive and distribution.
[1]Leonard Center Director William Lamb, second from left, with Cleveland City Firefighters (click image to enlarge)
“As frigid winter weather invades our area and temperatures continue to drop, hundreds of cases of emergency winter-weather blankets are being distributed by the Lee Leonard Center and its staff,” Brooks said in a statement. “Operation Compassion, based in Cleveland, is a global disaster relief and emergency organization whose reach encircles the globe, but whose help begins here at home in Bradley County.” Brooks said local relief assistance is being provided in the areas of homelessness, emergency shelters and emergencies services.
The winter-weather or emergency wool blankets distributed earlier this month are a wool-blend blanket designed for protection in temperatures below zero. Operation Compassion began the program by receiving blankets from charitable partners and directly from blanket manufacturers in quantities in the thousands.
“Thanks to a successful grant application and award, Operation Compassion now has the capacity to distribute 300,000 – 500,000 blankets along the East Coast, Minnesota, the Dakotas, on Indian Reservations near Gallup, N.M. and here at home in Tennessee,” states Dave Lorency, president of Operation Compassion.
Rep. Brooks added, “It was an honor to write the letter of recommendation for this grant application for blankets on behalf of Operation Compassion. This organization has the potential to reach the world with charitable good and services. I am always thrilled to help them in any way that I can as their local State Representative.”
William Lamb, Director of the Leonard Center at Lee University was selected as the local liaison for coordinating the distribution of blankets to Bradley County agencies and organizations. Lamb says, “Thank you to Operation Compassion and Rep. Kevin Brooks for thinking of the Leonard Center for this blanket project. We delivered 101 cases of blankets in two days.”
Lamb continued, “We provided the following agencies with enough blankets to put 2-3 per vehicle which will be helpful for them when they are responding to emergency calls in winter conditions:
• Bradley County Fire Department
• Bradley County Sheriff Department
• Bradley County EMS
• Cleveland Fire Department
• Cleveland Police Department
“In addition,” Lamb continued, “we delivered blankets to the Cleveland Emergency Shelter and The Caring Place. I have assured the agencies and emergency responders that we would attempt to provide more blankets in the coming days and weeks if they need more.”
In closing Rep. Brooks thanks Operation Compassion and the Leonard Center by saying, “These blankets will help our friends and neighbors keep warm this winter. I can think of no better way to start this holiday season, than by joining with these incredible organizations to give the gift of a warm blanket. God has blessed Bradley County and it’s a blessing to help give back.”
For more information on Operation Compassion visit www.operationcompassion.org [2]
For more information on the Leonard Center visit www.leeuniversity.edu/service-learnin [3]g.