First Baptist Church will host benefit concert for local Isaiah 117 House

Published 12:48 pm Thursday, December 8, 2022

A benefit Christmas concert for the local Isaiah 117 House will be held Saturday, Dec. 17, at 6 p.m. at Elizabethton First Baptist Church.

Among the featured artists are Loretta Bowers, Fred Goodwin, John Bunn, Gary Rice, Jamie Schaff, Beth Stevens, Jared Erwin, Larry Jeffers, Alex Riddle, and First Baptist Church Youth Praise Team, the Bowers family and friends, and many more.

Although the concert does not begin until 6 p.m., beginning at 4 p.m. the public is invited to the fellowship hall to purchase some Bar-B-Q dinners provided by Big Boy Catering. The dinners include meat, two sides, dessert and drink and sell for $12.

The public is invited to join the church family for dinner and a wonderful Christmas concert.

A love offering will be received for the Carter County Isaiah 117 House. Also, canned vegetables are being requested to help with the First Baptist Food Pantry.

The Isaiah 117 House journey began with the flagship house in Carter County, which began in 2017 with the first local board meeting. Throughout the new few months, the search was made for the perfect home to start the very first Isaiah 117 House. In September 2017, the local Isaiah 117 group purchased a home, and for the next year volunteers from the community worked to renovate the house and make it into a loving and safe environment for all the children that would step through its red doors. The Carter County home was officially opened June 19, 2018.

When children are removed from their homes out of concern for their welfare, they are usually brought to the Department of Children’s Services Offices to await placement with a foster family. This wait can be several hours to nearly a full day. These children often have nothing with them and are scared, lonely, hungry, and in dirty clothing.

Isaiah 117 provides a comforting home where these children instead can be brought to wait — a place that is safe with friendly and loving volunteers who provide clean clothes, smiles, toys, and snuggly blankets. This space allows children to receive the comfort and care they need while DCS staff can do the necessary paperwork and identify a good foster placement.

Isaiah 117 House is continuing to expand every day to serve the children in our communities. “It is amazing to watch God’s plan unfold in each of the counties we serve through the communities walking along beside us and believing that these kids deserve better and they are not alone,” said Rhonda Paulson, founder of the Isaiah 117 House.