About 15 years ago, a bookkeeper and administrative assistant at First Christian Church, Pam Bussell, had grown tired of seeing community resources wasted.
“We were running out of resources and having to turn people away because we didn’t have food for them or money to help out with their necessities,” Bussell said.
Several groups, such as churches, organizations, and local businesses, were facing the same problem. People were coming to them asking for help, and there was no way for them to know if they had already received it, so their donations were being misused.
“Multiple agencies were giving the same people assistance repeatedly and then running out of resources,” Bussell said.
She reached out to directors at Good Samaritan, Attic Outlet, local churches, nonprofits, and other community organizations to discuss ways to better help Tullahoma’s disenfranchised community without wasting their donations and resources.
“I wanted to cut back on some of that so we could help more people,” she said.
They began holding informal, monthly meetings to discuss what needs were present in Tullahoma and the best ways to address them. Within a matter of months, more agencies and churches began to join. The fire department got involved, guidance counselors from community schools chimed in, and local businesses and nonprofits pulled up a seat.
“Everyone agreed that something needed to be done about it,” she said. “Everybody has the same desire—to have their resources stretched as far as possible and to help as many people as possible.”
The group, which consists of over 90 organizations/ volunteers, is known in Tullahoma as “Better Together.” In between meetings, the group regularly calls and speaks over email, sharing needs or donations as they come.
Within months, the group was changing lives in Coffee County. When a deaf Tullahoma resident had difficulty getting their landlord to supply an accessible fire alarm in their unit, they contacted Better Together. Within hours, the fire department had secured a light-up alarm and installed it at the resident’s home the next day. Over the summer, Better Together partnered with the Tullahoma Housing Authority to offer a day camp so children could have at least two meals and activities to participate in during the day.
“When you have that many people working together, and it’s not exhausting [only] one organization’s resources, you’re able to do so much more,” she said. “We just discovered we are better when we are working together.”
One high school counselor reached out to the group with a student who had aged out of the foster system and needed housing. In a matter of days, Better Together found them an apartment and collected enough donations to fill their new home with the essentials. School officials reached out to the group when Tullahoma schools closed due to COVID-19. Better Together had churches open their doors for students whose parents worked and couldn’t be home during the day to help with schoolwork.
“We have had families whose homes have burned, and with one email, needs were met within days,” Bussell said.
With Tullahoma lacking an established homeless shelter, several Better Together members and area ministers helped start an Emergency Cold Winter Homeless Shelter. They rotate through local churches and allow members of the homeless community inside each night to have a warm place to sleep. It’s the kind of idealistic community support that government officials and community leaders dream of across the country, and it has become a reality in Tullahoma.
“Donations received in Coffee County, stay in Coffee County,” she said. “People have been willing to donate to us because we’re good stewards of their money.”
And if someone is abusing the system, they can flag it pretty quickly. They even work with Tullahoma utility services to make sure the money they donate for folks’ utility bills is actually going toward their utility bills. Since people from different agencies reach out to every corner of the community in communication about their resources, there is less chance for people to collect the same money from multiple places, allowing them to serve more people and families who really need the help.
Now, Better Together is building a shelter to house local people experiencing homelessness and a closet for foster parents to get things like strollers, car seats, and clothing they may need in the early days of fostering. Anyone wishing to help with foster care donations can contact Pam Bussell at (931) 455-2200, and anyone wishing to help with shelter efforts can contact Rev. Tom Murdock at (931) 455-2200. GN
