Come talk with us about how to help us be the Hope of East TN.
At Mission of Hope, we are the hope of East TN and want to hear from you! Let us know if you have any questions about our ministry, want to partner with us, would like to share how we’ve impacted your life, or have ideas about how we can further minister hope, through support or provide for the needs of the people of rural Appalachia.
Mission of Hope
Frequently Asked Questions!
You can drop off non-perishable food, hygiene items, new clothes, new toys, or good, clean used items (clothes, household, furniture, etc.) at our Mission of Hope warehouse, Monday – Friday, 9:00 – 4:00.
You can also make a financial donation year-round by credit card either online at our website, by calling the MOH office, or by mailing your check payable to the
Mission of Hope to:
Mission of Hope (865) 584-7571
P.O. Box 51824
Knoxville, TN 37950
Toll-Free from anywhere USA: 1-877-627-1909
Yes. If you have a person(s) whom you would like to honor or memorialize with a financial contribution to the Mission of Hope, we have gift acknowledgment cards for mailing.
In 1996, Bill Williams of WBIR-TV did a news story on "Hunger for Hope", where he informed us of the destitution and poverty in rural Appalachia. He showed real-life examples of children and families who suffered from physical hunger in the isolated mountains of southeastern Kentucky. Julie Holland and her husband Doug felt the desire to help meet some of the needs so Mission of Hope was born.
Many of them want to work, but because of the depressed economic development in these areas due to the closing of coal mines, there aren't any jobs to be found.
Due to the lack of education, job skills and the money for a move, it is almost impossible for them to even move and get jobs somewhere else.
Dial 211 in the Knox County and surrounding area for the area comprehensive information and referral service They will assist you with your needs.
Call your county's Chamber of Commerce for a list of different agencies in your area.
Mission of Hope returns 88% of the budget to the Appalachian relief ministry. We only have 5 paid employees, our Executive Director, Administrative Assistant, Operations Assistant, Financial Assistant and Warehouse Manager. We do have hundreds of loyal year-round volunteers.
We have several elementary schools for this year's BTS and Christmas deliveries plus we support many mountain ministry centers in Southeast Kentucky, Northeast Tennessee, and Southwest Virginia.
We have sponsor churches and businesses in charge of this. The deliveries are usually made on weekdays and are all-day trips. Our church/business teams recruit church members/employees to go on the deliveries which involve a planned program for the school, set up, distribution, take down, and clean up. On very rare occasions they may have additional spots available for the trips, these are opened to our year-round volunteers first.
We do throughout the year, but NOT at Christmas. At Christmas, we take only new items.
Yes, you may drop off used items at the warehouse, we accept drop-offs Monday - Friday from 9:00 to 4:00. Please call before coming as days & hours may vary. Tell the staff when you call if you have heavy items and need assistance unloading to be sure if we have any volunteers here to help.
Items we do NOT take:
- Appliances over 10 years old
- Mattresses
- Hospital Beds
- TVs
- Entertainment centers
- Large and/or heavy items (if exercise equipment, please check with MOH staff first)
- Encyclopedias
- Pianos & Organs
- Older books and older textbooks
- National Geographics and other magazines
We no longer do any pick-ups. All items must be brought to the Mission of Hope warehouse.
We will have our Volunteer Coordinator contact you if you want to volunteer.
- All volunteers must be scheduled. We cannot accommodate walk-ins.
- Volunteers must be age 16 or above. (Occasionally opportunities are available for those 12-16)
- Groups must be no more than 10 and willing to work in different areas.
- Most opportunities are during the daytime.
From time to time, children do help sort items in the warehouse, however, they must be at least 16 years of age. We do on occasion have volunteer opportunities for younger children, but no younger than 12 years of age and they must be accompanied by an adult. NO CHILDREN are to be scheduled in food or clothing except as requested by the coordinators.
All volunteers, adults, and children, must be scheduled. Get all their information on the blue volunteer card and tell them the Volunteer Coordinator will be in contact with them.
The level of activity at the warehouse is very hectic and we have many vehicles and motorized equipment moving about at these times. Safety becomes a very important issue
We ask that our parent volunteers come to the warehouse one day and work a shift to get the full sense of what we do at this location so that they can then decide if their son/daughter would be suited for the type of work that goes on around here. Then while you are here, you could schedule a time when the two of you could return to help.
We get some calls from 16 - 17 year olds who want service hours and we try to fit them in if possible. However, we would like for the parent to accompany them on the first shift, if possible, and then help us decide if the child would be able to work additional shifts. They are required to keep up with their service hours, we can then sign their form for them, or provide them with one if they do not have one of their own.
We have sponsor churches and businesses in charge of this. The deliveries are usually made on weekdays and are all-day trips. Our church/business teams recruit church members/employees to go on the deliveries which involve a planned program for the school, set up, distribution, take down, and clean up. This makes for a long, hectic day therefore we discourage children from going on these trips.
You can purchase items through our Cyber Barrel Drive. Please see our website for more details. Or you can drop off non-perishable food items, new unwrapped clothes, new toys & hygiene items at our warehouse. We are normally open Monday – Friday from 9:00 – 4:00 for drop-offs. Please call before you come, to be sure we have someone available to help you.
You can also make a cash donation year-round on our website at: missionofhope.org or by phone at 865-584-7571; or by sending your check payable to the Mission of Hope to:
P.O. Box 51824
Knoxville, TN 37950
We will not be conducting our Blue Barrel Campaign as we have in past years. We do have posters and flyers available here at the office if you would like to promote our Cyber Barrel Drive, or you can wrap up a box and do your own collection that way; however, we will not be able to pick up items, you must bring any donations of new items you collect to our warehouse. We do have a flyer we can email to you to copy and use for your collection, please just let us know if you need that.
We will have Blue Barrels at select locations (please call the front desk for locations). All other new donations must be brought to MOH.