SHE PACKED her school supplies days earlier. After the shopping trip with her mom, she carefully picked out her favorite colors and the latest styles, her thoughts racing between which teachers she’d get and which friends would be in her classes. Finally deciding on the perfect outfit, she laid everything out the night before the big day. She was ready.
Kacey Day holds fond memories of the first days of school, especially the joy of choosing a new outfit. These memories flooded her mind as she drove through her community, praying for a way to be a difference-maker in the lives of those around her. An idea began to come into focus — an outfit for the first day of school for students in need.
“Growing up, the first day of school was always a big deal for me,” said Day, a 2023 college graduate. “I thought about a way to provide a first day of school outfit for those who didn’t have the means to do so to provide additional excitement for their first day of school.”
She was excited by the idea but was a bit nervous. Having graduated college in the spring and started her own small business, she worried if there was enough time in her schedule for such a large project. Could she put the effort into it? How big might it grow?
“But in general, I was excited because I knew that serving my hometown would leave an influence whether it turned out big or small,” she said.
And so the planning began.
Day put her business management degree to work, pulled out her phone, and brainstormed the steps to blessing Tullahoma students. She made a post in a Tullahoma Facebook group that included a confidential application for those needing assistance for children from 3 to 17 years old and shared how others in the community could help.
The applications came pouring in, and so did the donations. As more and more people shared Day’s post, even folks from surrounding counties who received the sizes and needs (but not names or personal information) of an area child contributed donations of shirts, pants, skirts, dresses, and shoes.
As the time for distribution grew closer, Day got to work packaging the outfits for delivery.
“I organized 115 outfits out of my bedroom. The week before, I put together bags of information on the children and youth ministries at our church, New Life United Pentecostal, so I had 115 bags spread out between my bedroom and my living room. It got a little crazy at our house at the end,” she said. “When it came to distributing the bags, I had help from lots of friends and family to ensure that it went smoothly.”
Day’s worries that she might not have enough to meet the need were unfounded.
She said, “We actually had more clothes donated than requests. I really wasn’t expecting such a big number of requests, and I was worried that we wouldn’t have enough clothes. But we had way more clothes donated than people signed up to receive them, so that was good. I was even able to donate more to those who needed extra.”
The response from the students and their families affirmed she’d followed her heart correctly.
“Of course, the students said thank you, but you could tell how happy and excited they were once they got the outfit. But, for the most part, the parents were overall grateful,” said Day. “I did it for the students, but I also did it for the parents because I know some parents have a difficult time and different situations and seasons of life where they’re trying their hardest for their kids, but life events make it troublesome. So there were good responses from both students and parents.”
But Day isn’t just following her heart. She’s living out her calling.
“I grew up in church. My family always served wherever there was a need in my church. I’m a local minister at my church, and we talk a lot about doing in-reach and outreach. I know I’m young, but God can use whomever He chooses. And so I was praying one day, asking God to give me something, whether big or small and then I will be obedient to it. So that’s what God gave me. I feel like it not only touched the community and influenced them, but it also was a growing process for me to serve others just as Christ served us,” Day said.
Clothing students meets more than basic needs; it reaches others as the hands and feet of Jesus who said, “For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in.” Matthew 25:35 GN
