ALCOA, Tenn. — A Blount County car dealership is making it easier for the Salvation Army to serve people across East Tennessee.
Ole Ben Franklin Motors and Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs, presented the Ford F-150 truck to the Salvation Army on Thursday.
Salvation Army Major Cameron Henderson said Ole Ben Franklin offered to donate the truck after learning the nonprofit needed a new one.
"And they have just been so generous to us with the truck but also helping us all during the year," Henderson said. "They're just such generous people."
Henderson said as of Thursday, the Salvation Army's shelter in Knoxville serves around 65 people each night. Last year, the nonprofit helped more than 150 families experiencing homelessness find a place to live, and it said this new truck will help move more people into permanent housing.
He said the services at the Salvation Army also help people learn how to manage their finances and care for their children.
"We're doing that for 153 families in the whole region, including about 50 of those here in the Maryville and Blount County area," Henderson said. "So helping families leave behind the cycle of poverty, helping those who find themselves homeless get out of that scenario."
People will see the truck out and about hauling donations in East Tennessee soon.
"During a disaster season, you might see it loaded with water and supplies to take to fire workers and police, and those who find themselves in a needy situation," Henderson said. "During the year you'll see maybe a sofa, or supplies that they might need to move into their own home when they get an apartment or a house. We're helping them move into those things with this truck."
New vehicles are expensive, and with rising costs across the board, the Salvation Army wasn't in a position to purchase a new truck, Henderson said.
"Right now we have those 65 people staying with us," Henderson said. "And it's three meals a day. And it's the services that we provide for them and helping them find in apartments and those kinds of things. All of those costs keep going up."
