Fun on the way

A local nonprofit is getting the ball rolling to bring an exciting new option for children to town. An effort is underway to create the McMinnville Children's Museum. 

Under the leadership of Lindsay Powell, a board has been formed and fundraising efforts will begin soon. The non-profit group is launching the initiative with the goal of providing a positive and nurturing environment to promote the education and development of the children of McMinnville and surrounding communities.

"Our goal is ambitious yet attainable: To raise the funds needed to open the museum within two years of our first fundraiser," Lindsay said. "This would give McMinnville a family-centered destination to inspire and educate future generations."

The first fundraiser for the museum is planned for mid-May. 

"We're looking for sponsors for our fundraiser," Lindsay said. "We're hoping it will be an exciting time to come together as a community and contribute to making the museum a reality. Whether you're an artist, a planner, a volunteer, or simply someone who wants to see this dream come true, we'd love your help."

The board is currently seeking volunteers to assist in fundraising efforts and community outreach. The group is also welcoming new board members. The movement to create the museum is just getting underway and the board welcomes community members to help provide guidance and secure a site.

"If you're passionate about education, creativity and community engagement, please consider applying to join our board of directors to help guide this exciting project," Lindsay said.

To get involved, contact the board at themcmuseum@gmail.com.

Help is available

Providing a boost to those who need help getting and keeping a job is the goal for the folks at Tennessee Mental Health Consumers' Association (TMHCA). Their stated mission is "To promote recovery and community through peer support, education and advocacy for all mental health consumers in Tennessee."

"TMHCA started in 1988," Jordan Young, TMHCA director of employment, education and advocacy, said. "We are something unique to mental health. We're a non-profit who focuses on peer support. Primarily, that is people who have personal lived experiences with mental health or addictions helping other people with those same challenges in an effort to connect, provide hope and share some of what we've learned. It's a more mutual process to mental health recovery than the traditional ones."

That goal is achieved through several ways. In the McMinnville office, at 1031 Sparta St., the staff focuses on support employment.

"We help people living with mental health challenges, addiction recovery, incarceration, homelessness and other challenges to find jobs and get started  on a career or go back to school," Jordan said.

TMHCA connects with clients through referrals from places such as CHEER Mental Health, Mental Health Cooperative in Cookeville and pretty much anyone. But people are also welcome to walk in and ask for help.

"We don't turn anyone away," Jordan said. "Someone can self-refer. The program for support employment is free. There are no insurance requirements. It is called Individual Placement Support (IPS). You'll connect with one of our fine people who will work really closely and intensely on a job search. We help people find a job and keep a job. When you've gone through certain circumstances in life, it can be tough down the road. So we provide follow-along support for as long as the person needs."

"Follow-along support are totally individualized," IPS Specialist Shelby Beattie said. "Those can be weekly calls, check-ins and meetings. We like to meet with them the first month of their employment. But it can also be calling them before a shift or taking them to work, helping them prepare to set an alarm or set up transportation. If they have social security benefits, we can help with that as well. Really, any kind of support they need during their employment, we can provide."

"And if we can't help them ourselves, we have resources to connect them with people who can," IPS Specialist Sara Rosales  added.

TMHCA serves 60-70 people per month on average, and has served thousands since starting the support employment program in McMinnville in 2016.

"It's totally free to participate thanks to funding from the Tennessee  Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. We are grant funded," Jordan said. "And we are also partially funded by Vocational Rehabilitation with the Tennessee Department of Human Services. That makes it accessible. We don't have a wait list right now, and we have a great staff. We try to create an environment where our team can be their best selves and can support others." 

Jordan told me he has been with TMHCA over five years and has seen hundreds of success stories. The staff agreed the fulfilling work is the reason they are all there.

TMHCA is located at 1031 Sparta St. and can be contacted at (931) 474-4053.

Medley buys The Oak

Bill Medley only thought he was done with the restaurant business when he sold Medley's Diner in Morrison in the summer of 2023. It turns out retirement wasn't for him and he's now back in the game, having purchased The Oak Restaurant at 947 Interstate Drive in neighboring Manchester. 

"We sold the restaurant and thought we were ready for retirement," Bill told me. "After two years, sitting down is not my thing. Our two youngest feel like they may want to be in the food industry at sometime. We originally tried to buy the old location in Morrison back, but the owners didn't want to sell, so we looked elsewhere and are now in Coffee County, about 15 miles from our last location."

Now known as Medley's at the Oaks, the restaurant had its grand opening on Tuesday and offers a menu familiar to fans of Medley's previous location, which means meat and three, beans, potatoes, a salad bar, breakfast, wings, pizza and much more. 

Medley's at the Oaks is an approximately 30-minute drive from downtown McMinnville and is open Tuesday and Wednesday from 6 a.m. - 3 p.m., Thursday - Saturday from 6 a.m. - 9 p.m. and Sunday from 7 a.m. - 3 p.m.

"We appreciate our Warren County customers and we'd love for you make the drive to see us," Bill said.

Until next week,

same biz day,

same biz page

Thanks for reading another edition of Business Pulse sponsored by Ben Lomand Connect. I really appreciate the questions I've received this week and, while I haven't quite gotten all the answers to them yet, rest assured I've been digging into them. Keep them coming to editor@southernstandard.com.