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Wlaf1450First Power of the Purse Program raises funds for CHET
A NOTE FROM THE GRAND ON CENTRAL: “There is so much good going on in our community, and I want to share all this good with you every Monday here on WLAF in hopes that you will start your week in a grand way making each week a Grand Week,” said Olivia Lobertini, owner of The Grand on Central.
By Charlotte Underwood
LAFOLLETTE, TN (WLAF)- Community Health of East Tennessee (CHET) held its Power of the Purse event on Saturday, raising funds for the clinic’s domestic violence shelter. The community was asked to “clean out their closets” for a good cause, with CHET collecting twice new donated purses, which were sold and auctioned at Saturday’s fundraiser.
“The event went great, with people lining up outside the door before the event even started at 10 am. We had wonderful donations and great support from the community,” said CHET CEO Teresa Dabney.
She also said she wanted to thank “everyone that came to the event and all those who supported the event and donated purses for the fundraiser”
Fundraising programs such as this are conducted throughout the nation to benefit domestic violence shelters, but this is the first time for CHET to host this type of fundraiser.
“This is our first attempt at this event, and I think it is going to be an ongoing fundraiser and just grow bigger each year and benefit the domestic violence shelter in a great way; this helps us help victims of domestic violence have a better quality of life,” Dabney said.
The event not only raised funds, it also raised awareness and support for the domestic violence shelter.
“Power of the Purse is our newest fundraiser benefiting our domestic violence shelter. It is also symbolic of the fact that often when a victim is fleeing a situation, they may only have time to grab their purse,” said CHET’s Marketing and Public Relations Director April Bozeman
New and gently used purses and wallets were collected and then “resold at very discounted prices.”
For Saturday’s event, the clinic lobby was turned into a “purse boutique.”
CHET’s goal was to collect 500 purses for the event, and the goal was met. “All donations were tax deductible,” Bozeman said.
Since this event is for CHET’s domestic violence shelter, it is also a domestic violence awareness event. A credit card size description of what to get from your home when you are leaving a domestic violence situation was placed into each purse.
According to Bozeman, this fundraiser will provide much needed funds for the domestic violence shelter.
“We’ve had a great turnout so far and we appreciate the support so much. Although the shelter is funded by a state grant, it is not enough to keep the shelter operating. They rely on donations and fundraisers to offset costs that are not covered by the grant. It allows us to maintain a secret safe haven for victims of domestic violence, not only for our county but surrounding counties as well,” Bozeman said.
A NOTE FROM THE GRAND ON CENTRAL: “There is so much good going on in our community, and I want to share all this good with you every Monday here on WLAF in hopes that you will start your week in a grand way making each week a Grand Week,” said Olivia Lobertini, owner of The Grand on Central.
For bookings, email Olivia Lobertini at ohlobertini03@gmail.com. Check on avails HERE. (WLAF NEWS PUBLISHED-03/30/2026-6AM-PHOTOS SUBMITTED)