“I cannot give you the formula for success, but I can give you the formula for failure, which is: Try to please everybody.”
— Herbert Bayard Swope
EAR TO THE GROUND
THE LOCAL Tennessee Saves coalition members are hosting a Save Green Go Green event March 6 at Hamilton Place. Community leaders will provide information and resources for families and individuals who are struggling with finances or want to learn more about conserving the resources they have. Exhibits and presentations will provide activities and resources for adults and youth at the mall’s lower-level stage area near the food court.
“Tennessee Saves is excited to provide this free service,” says coalition member June Puett, with the University of Tennessee Extension. “Our partners will offer fun and information for the entire family, including our annual Piggy Bank Pageant. They can win cash and prizes in the money machine.”
Community partners will offer credit and housing counseling, in addition to free financial planning and assessment tools. The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program will offer free tax preparation for households earning less than $49,000. Call 211 to schedule an appointment for the event and to locate other VITA sites.
The event will celebrate the fourth annual Tennessee Saves Week which motivates people of all ages and incomes to “start small, think big” when it comes to saving money. Tennessee Saves is a local affiliate of the America Saves campaign.
For more information, call Ms. Puett at 855-6113 or e-mail — jpuett@utk.edu.
HEARD ON THE TOWN
LEE UNIVERSITY’S second annual Writer’s Festival was held recently on Cleveland campus. According to event spokeswoman Beth Harbin, the event was a success.
Coordinator and Lee professor Stacey Isom said the main focus is students. “Some of the most valuable events take place in the small writing workshops with the interaction of our guests with our students,” she said.
The festival was a combination of creative and academic writing and theater.
Among those leading workshops were best-selling author Silas House whose focus was fiction. He offered practical advice based on his work and experience, Ms. Harbin said in a news release.
The author also read from his latest novel, “Eli the Good,” a story about the complexities of childhood, the realities of war and the real meaning of patriotism. He answered questions from the audience and signed copies of his novels.
Lisa Neely lead workshops on theater. She talked about the principles of playwright Eric Ehn and challenged students to think about art as an act of community. Neely also directed three plays including Ms. Isom’s “On the 8s,” and two short plays written by students Jordan Davi and Jessie Wright.
“The collaboration with Lisa Neely, the talented cast and Catherine Bradley (technical director) was invaluable to my process,” Ms. Isom said. “Having an audience helped too. I learned a lot about my play from them.”