KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — After several years of hard work, Cancer Support Community East Tennessee is finally in its new Knoxville home. The non-profit organization provides cancer support and education to those battling the disease as well as their caregivers.
“I am very excited to be in this new facility. It is a dream our board and staff have had for several years. We wanted what we call our forever home,” said Beth Hamil, Executive Director of CSCET.
The new building, located at 6204 Baum Drive, cost $1.8 million. Community donations pitched in to help bring the project to fruition.
“We started in 2019, right before the pandemic and so we were a little panicked. We might not, you know, get to the finish line, but we’re really close,” she said.
The pandemic also taught them a lot about ways to meet their client’s needs.
“Well, you know some of the lessons we learned from the pandemic. So, we have an indoor-outdoor space, for example, we’ve upgraded our heating and air to make it as healthy as possible. the rooms are more spacious so that people can socialize if they want to,” said Hamil.
Their ability to provide hybrid classes will continue but many who use their services were eager to close those laptops.
“I’m excited that it’s in person. I’ve been taking all the art classes for a long time. I’ve been coming since 2017, I believe. And I love Kelly’s classes’” said Susan Good.
Good said for a few hours in her day she doesn’t have to think about cancer.
“This has been a lifeline for me and has offered support for when I first got diagnosed,” said Good. “I had my son at home, and it was really nice for him. It’s been great for my husband. I’ve enjoyed all the classes, the writing classes, the cooking classes.”
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Cancer Support Community East Tennessee now has more space to help even more families in our area.
“We want to help people navigate the challenges of cancer, but we also want people to experience the joy in spite of cancer,” said Hamil.
With this new facility, they will be able to do just that. To learn how more about their free classes and programs: https://www.cancersupportet.org/getting-started/.
