This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Morning Pointe Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Morning Pointe Senior Living.
Morning Pointe Senior Living co-founders Greg A. Vital and J. Franklin Farrow established The Morning Pointe Foundation in 2014 as a 501(c)3 nonprofit public service organization. Its mission is to provide caregiver support programs, sponsor educational awareness events and fund clinical scholarships to advance the care of seniors throughout the Southeast.
“We saw a need then and continuing now for more understanding about services for seniors, whether that be adult children caring for their aging parents and looking for resources, or young people who are looking for a career and haven’t explored the variety of rewarding options available in senior living,” said Farrow. “The Foundation has grown and impacted so many lives over the years. We are thankful to each individual and business that has given funds to support its mission.”
Scholarships
The Foundation partners with 17 colleges across the Southeast, starting with the first, Chattanooga State Community College. More than 111 scholarships have been awarded at partner schools over the years. Most are clinical scholarships given to aspiring nurses in an effort to lessen the worldwide nursing shortage.
“Thank you for giving me the nursing scholarship,” shared Yvetta Dye, one of the Morning Pointe Foundation scholarship recipients from Bluegrass Community & Technical College in Fall 2023. “It feels like a reward for my hard work. I have been a full-time student as well as raising my children, and this scholarship has helped not only myself, but my family as well. I have worked as a nurse aide, and now I see a clear path toward nursing. I will be the first one in my family to graduate from college. I appreciate all the support, and I look forward to moving on with my career and serving the community.”
Danielle Herbig, a nursing student at Columbia State Community College in Columbia, Tennessee, received the spring 2024 scholarship. She shared, “It means I don’t have to work as many hours, and I can focus more on my schooling and studying and taking advantage of the quality education I’m getting right now.”
In recent years, the Foundation has added new scholarship categories: an occupational therapy and physical therapy scholarship at Roane State Community College in Roane County, Tennessee; a physical therapy scholarship at Eastern Kentucky University in Richmond, Kentucky; a social work scholarship at Dalton State College in Dalton, Georgia; and a culinary scholarship at Walters State Community College in Morristown, Tennessee.
“We chose these new categories knowing that when people look at moving to senior living, they look at food and activities,” said Miranda Perez, Morning Pointe Foundation executive director. “The Foundation recognizes that in senior care, nutrition and staying active are both vital for overall health. These new scholarships are just another way we can help provide the full circle of care for the senior community.”
Clinical Sites, Internships, Educational Events and More
But the Morning Pointe Foundation goes beyond providing scholarships. It connects state colleges with Morning Pointe Senior Living campuses to provide sites for clinical rotations for students and opportunities for internships. It also provides sponsorships of health sciences programs and events, such as the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga’s School of Nursing gala.
The Foundation also provides educational events such as its yearly Caregiver Café series, which is free and open to the public and features experts sharing on topics of interest to senior caregivers. Several years ago, Kim Campbell joined the series, sharing with an in-person audience how Alzheimer’s impacted her family when her late husband, musician and singer Glen Campbell, was diagnosed with the disease.
Major Fundraisers and Growth
Helping drive these benefits are the Foundation’s major fundraisers. These include two golf tournaments in Tennessee, one on Lookout Mountain, and one in Niota, Tennessee, organized by Morning Pointe of Athens, Tennessee, Assisted Living.
They also include four Seniors Got Talent shows. which take place from July to November in Chattanooga, Franklin and Knoxville, Tennessee, as well as Lexington, Kentucky. They showcase talented singers, dancers, musicians and other entertainers age 60 and over, who have the chance to perform for a large audience and compete for the grand prize. This year, contestants will vie for the first-place prize of $1,000, with $500 going to second place and $250 presented to third place. All ticket sales and sponsorships for the shows go to the Foundation.
Donations have grown over the years, with 2023 bringing in a record $237,000 in funding for the Foundation.
“The Morning Pointe Foundation is so thankful for the generous sponsors and donors at our various fundraisers and those who give throughout the year who just believe in what we are doing to serve students, caregivers and families,” said Perez.
To give to the Morning Pointe Foundation, visit morningpointefoundation.com.
Founded in 1997 by senior healthcare entrepreneurs Greg A. Vital and J. Franklin Farrow, Morning Pointe Senior Living owns and operates 38 assisted living, personal care, and Alzheimer’s memory care communities in five southeastern states.
