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\u201cThe concept is quite simple,\u201d Corley said. \u201cI created a Facebook group and encouraged public school teachers to join and post their Amazon Wish Lists, which includes their needs and wants, and we invited everyone in our social circle to join this group. I manage the group exclusively, rally the troops, field questions, etc., and I run the campaigns for about 60 days. I do this during June and July to create a sense of urgency. Items purchased from the Wish List arrive at the teachers\u2019 doorsteps. Then they post pictures to our page of what they received. From there, something beautiful begins to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When Corley was a student at SCHS, her speech and drama teacher, Karen Christie Ford, encouraged her to believe in herself. \u201cInstead of focusing on my shortcomings, she always encouraged me to identify what I was good at and to go be great at it. When someone asks what inspired me to launch this campaign, I always credit her for the incredible difference she made in my life. I vowed that someday I would find a way to honor her and I would \u2018pay it forward.\u2019 That day came in June of 2020.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Corley continued, \u201cCOVID-19 was doing its best to steal joy from everyone in its path. In June, I had a little idea. Having kids of my own in our public school system, I knew how much our teachers were spending out of pocket to provide for their classrooms. When I first started the group, my hope was simple: to connect with a few teachers and learn about their classroom needs through the Amazon Wish List. I figured we\u2019d celebrate even if only a handful of items were purchased by generous donors \u2014 the success we experienced was nothing short of divine. I was simply doing what I felt led to do; God did the rest. It was a lot of work, but I felt as if I was being directed and obedient in my efforts.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n That first summer, with only a fraction of teachers reporting, Corley was pleasantly surprised when she saw the total was over $30,000! \u201cWhen the summer of 2021 rolled around, local teachers started reaching out, asking when the new campaign was going to launch. The rest is history!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n That summer, $45,000 worth of Amazon Wish Lists were fulfilled. Momentum continued to build. Posts were being shared on social media. Soon, Corley had another brilliant idea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBack in 2021, I began thinking about how the campaign could evolve to shine a spotlight on another vital part of our community \u2014 our local small businesses. I began hosting weekly Facebook Live events during the campaign, sharing updates and then hosting giveaways sponsored by local businesses. Leading up to each Live event, I featured the businesses by sharing links to their Facebook pages. To be eligible to win, teachers and support staff needed to like and\/or follow their page. This gave these businesses a whole new audience! I researched their businesses and created engaging \u2018infomercials\u2019 during the Live events. Some viewers jokingly shared that they gather a drink and snacks like they\u2019re about to watch a movie!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n By 2022, the donations had tripled the amount raised in their first year. During the 2023 campaign, donations doubled the previous year and surpassed that number the following year. When their sixth campaign ended in the summer of 2025, Corley had helped to raise over $1 million for our local teachers, classrooms, and schools without ever having to touch a single dime!<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis group started as a simple idea to help a few teachers with classroom essentials, but it has grown into something truly powerful because of our community support,\u201d Corley said. \u201cEvery Wish List fulfilled, and every item donated, is proof that when we come together, we can make a real difference. Our campaign is a place where we exercise kindness in the biggest way. It\u2019s an uplifting space that celebrates our \u2018difference makers!\u2019 If you want to escape the negativity found all around us these days, just visit our page, and you\u2019re sure to find JOY there! That\u2019s my promise.\u201d GN<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n To make a difference today, join over 4,000 followers on the Bedford County, TN \u2013 Adopt a Teacher Facebook page.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" TINA CORLEY looked on in grateful awe at the rows of pallets stacked near her husband, Ryan, and their adult children, Chloe and Caden. Every pallet was stuffed with school supplies for the Bedford County Adopt a Teacher campaign. The July heat \u2014 coupled with no air conditioning inside the Goggin Warehouse \u2014 was no […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":24893,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24891","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-feature"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/shelbyville\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2026\/04\/4-1-1024x683.jpg\")
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