thedailytimes.com : Your 24/7 news source

The Family Promise of Blount County program has scored a $10,000 grant from Humana of Tennessee.

"We're highly excited," Executive Director Chermera McGhee. "We've very motivated to even apply for more grants in the future. We're constantly looking for new grants out there."

The Family Promise program allows local churches to provide overnight accommodations and meals for homeless families on a rotating basis. Green Meadow United Methodist Church serves as the day center for the program, giving families a place to stay during the day while they look for housing and work. The day center provides a stable telephone number, mailing address and a base of operations for participants.

The Humana grant will be put to work helping with the transportation needs of the program participants.

The average stay for families in Family Promise programs nationwide is 52 days. Ideally, the families are in the program for no more than three months. The families are required to seek employment and housing. Failure to work toward independence means termination from the program. Families are referred to Family Promise through the school systems, social services and various nonprofit organizations.

To make a referral to Family Promise, community members can contact Family Promise at 233-4737.