Susan Thornton, a Brentwood resident for over 40 years and self-described “rogue warrior” for disaster relief, could use your help collecting items for victims of the East Tennessee wildfires.
Thornton, the CEO of First Construction Company, is gathering gifts to be donated to the Greater Smoky Mountains Church of Christ in Pigeon Forge. A collection Smartbox is located in the back of the parking lot of Brentwood United Methodist Church, next to the counseling center building. Donations will be accepted until 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 20.
Thornton has been involved with numerous relief organizations in the past, including the Salvation Army and the American Red Cross, but she sees benefits in dealing with a locally based organization like a church.
For starters, dealing with a local church has allowed Thornton to target specific items for donation.
“What the people up there have asked for is new socks, new underwear and Christmas gift items, particularly for teenagers,” Thornton said.
She also mentioned requests for Walmart gift cards in $20 increments.
Another advantage to directing donations towards a church, as Thornton sees it, is that organizations like churches have organic connections with a community that outside organizations do not.
“This is going to a specific church in Pigeon Forge that will be serving the community impacted by the fires in perpetuity,” Thornton said. “This church is gonna be there, they’re always gonna be in contact with these folks. This is not some post-disaster agency that comes in for two weeks and leaves.”
Thornton has a personal connection to the tragedy that befell the Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge — a “Lady Vol” connection, as she put it. Thornton was an athlete at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, playing on the volleyball team and running track and field. She said the house of a former teammate of hers burned down in the wildfires.
Thornton is planning on taking the donations to East Tennessee herself on Wednesday. That doesn’t leave a lot of time to collect, but she doesn’t think that will be much of a problem.
“I find that the people of Brentwood have good hearts, and they want to know that they are doing the right thing and they will respond,” she said. “And I know it’s last minute, but that’s sometimes the most spontaneous, best way. To just do it, to show up.”
Whatever her donation drive brings in, Thornton knows that there are forces at work greater than any one individual. Forces that inspire her to do the work she does.
“It’s a God thing, it’s a community thing,” she said.
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