Club Knox Day 5

Hey all, it’s Lexi again blogging about club knox! It was especially difficult to wake up this morning after staying up past 1am reflecting and discussing each other’s celebrity-look-a-likes (shout out to Jake aka Shamwow guy).

We started the day by traveling to the Salvation Army woman’s shelter and we were pleasantly surprised to receive a very generous breakfast spread with fruit, croissants, pastries, and COFFEE. We then got to hear from Ms. Natasha about how the shelter works and how women who have suffered from domestic violence often get a higher priority for getting into this shelter. We got a tour of the facility, and I was really surprised by how nice it was and learned about how they help these women move into more permanent housing. I also really liked the fact that the women who stayed there were also able to bring their children. One of the most eye opening parts of this experience was when two women who were staying in the shelter told us their story. They did not appear to be women that one would expect to find in a homeless shelter, but they had both left their abusive partners to escape domestic violence. They also wanted desperately to have their own home and start fresh in a safe environment. After touring both the women and men’s shelters, we got the chance to lie outside and bask in the sun. Seriously, it was glorious. We all got to take a little nap while lying in the grass, and then we woke up to have lunch (our fav…PB&Js).

Next, we returned to the Phyllis Wheatley Center to paint the mural they were displaying, and we got to play with tons of kids! Many children from the local church also came to the center today. We had our hands full playing basketball, playing on scooters, jump roping, hula hooping and more! I especially loved getting the talk to the kids while watching Despicable Me 2 (I LOVE MINIONS).

Afterwards we spent the day walking around Market Square in Knoxville. We got some awesome sales at Urban Outfitters and also got Rita’s! It was so nice to just be outdoors and walk around the city. Then we enjoyed some relaxing time before dinner and feasted on our last “sustainable” dinner of the trip. Later we did reflection, and again it was an great time to come together, and I truly feel so lucky to have experienced this trip with everyone. Next stop, the Smokey Mountains!