Kathy Tate’s phone rang again Wednesday morning. The manager of the Appalachian Women’s Guild quickly moved through the introductory pleasantries of an unexpected call.
“Is anything wrong?” Tate asked the caller.
Outside Tate’s office, workers sorted through donations for the guild’s resale store. In the store aisles, customers picked through shoes, jeans and Halloween costumes sold for single dollar bills.
For decades the store and its various offerings have served its neighbors on the mountain in Grundy County. Some visitors come in needing food. Others cannot pay the bills. The guild does not ask questions, Tate said.
“If your name is Rockefeller and you come in and need a coat, we’ll give it to you,” she said.