As we have celebrated our 100th year of service, through executing 100 “Grand Gestures”, it is time now to move on to our 101st year where we will continue to share happiness throughout the home.

From furniture and mattress donations to gardening and painting, it has been an honor to spread happiness and lend a helping hand to those in need across Virginia, West Virginia and Tennessee.

Because we have been blessed with 100 great years, the Grand Gesture program has been just one of the ways that we have been able to give back and say “THANK YOU” for allowing us the opportunity to serve you for 100 years. We have all truly enjoyed serving our local organizations through the Grand Happiness Foundation.

Take a minute and check out the short video we made that highlights some of our favorite gestures over the past year. From all of us here at Grand, Happy New Year and here’s to many, many more!

A little birdie told the Johnson City store that Boones Creek Middle School needed furniture for its entry foyer to create an inviting impression on visitors. As Grand has a history of creating a welcoming atmosphere in its stores, through its employees and with its furniture selection, this was a great task for the Johnson City crew.

But there’s a little twist. Allison Hickman, a title I math instructional assistant at the middle school, has a personal tie to Grand as her husband, Ronnie Hickman, is an employee at the Johnson City store. And not only that, he grew up with the school’s principal, Mike Edmonds. This was all the more reason to provide a donation to the middle school.

So with that, George Hamblen, Johnson City store manager, invited his employee’s old pal in to the store to pick out brand new furniture for the school.

“We’re very happy to support the needs of Boone Creek Middle School,” Hamblen said. “Anything that eases their financial burden and helps them continue to do great work with our young people is well worth it.”

Edmonds took pictures of prospective pieces for the school administrators and faculty to “vote” on. “We discussed everything; it was definitely a team decision,” he said. “This is a very large upgrade for us. We need to spend first on student needs, so these expenses rely on raising funds through dances and other activities. We’re elated to be a ‘grand gesture’.”

…And the story then happily ends with Boones Creek Middle school receiving a recliner, loveseat, two side chairs, four leather chairs, three occasional tables and wall art for the school office waiting area. Students, staff and visitors will now be welcomed to the school by a beautifully, cozy furnished foyer!

Now that Boones Creek Middle School has a welcoming foyer, we want to know how you jazz up your foyer for your guests.

BRISTOL, Tenn. – The “Grand Week of Giving” at AutoTrader.com Speedway In Lights powered by TVA resulted in an early Christmas present for one area nonprofit organization.

Second Harvest Food Bank received $1,000 worth of furniture from Grand Home Furnishings after earning more votes than any other agency from visitors to the holiday light show at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Speedway In Lights guests were invited to vote for one of five nonprofit organizations during last week’s “Grand Week of Giving.”

Other agencies that received votes were Advocate Center, Girls Inc. of Bristol, Kingsport Housing Authority and Rise Up!

Tickets for AutoTrader.com Speedway In Lights, open nightly from 6 to 10 p.m. through Jan. 7, are available at the BMS gate. Ticket prices for cars are $10 Sunday through Thursday, and $12 Friday and Saturday. Each night activity van tickets are $15 and bus tickets are $65.

Wednesday and Thursday nights throughout the Speedway In Lights run, Santa’s Speedway Sleigh also is in operation, taking as many as 30 passengers along the 4.5-mile route in a special tram designed to give them a unique, open-air experience.

The tram stops for 30 minutes in the BMS infield to allow guests to enjoy the crafts, carnival rides and food vendors in Christmas Village. Santa also stops in each night and is available for pictures. Each guest receives a coupon for a free bag of marshmallows to roast at the fire pits in Christmas Village. For their comfort, blankets also are available for patrons’ use for the duration of the ride.

For more information concerning AutoTrader.com Speedway In Lights, Santa’s Speedway Sleigh, HVAC Chill Hill, and Johnson Controls Ice Rink call 989-6900.

Read this article online at timesnews.net

It was another “grand gesture” on the part of Grand Home Furnishings.

“This is just our way to give back to our community locally and thank everybody for 100 years of support of Grand Home Furnishings,” said Colleen Price, the manager of the Waynesboro Grand Home Furnishings retail store, at the Waynesboro Senior Center, to which Grand had just delivered donated Snuggies, nutritional drinks, adult diapers and three rocking chairs.

Grand also brought along Santa Claus to pass out gifts to members of the Senior Center.

“Christmas is all about giving back and giving to other people. This is a great way for us to end our year and tell people thank you,” Price said. “The Snuggies will keep people warm. The rockers I’m sure will be put to good use. And we donated some time last week to wrapping gifts.

“What we really wanted to do is just give back, and we’re particularly happy to be able to give back to our seniors here locally, because these seniors are among our first customers at Grand,” Price said.

Senior Center director Janice Gentry expressed thanks on the part of the Center and its members.

“There’s no way on a nonprofit’s budget that we’d be able to afford such nice furnishings,” Gentry said. “It’s wonderful to have that donation. And I know that our homebound clients who receive those Snuggies that were donated will relish having them for the wintertime coming up.

“It’s so generous of them to do that, along with bringing Santa, and Santa taking pictures with all of our members and all of our guests here today as well. It’s just been a fabulous day,” Gentry said.

Read this online at www.augustafreepress.com

Start a new family tradition

Whether it is going Christmas caroling or having a family holiday game night, starting a new tradition will get everyone excited for the years to come. Start by getting input from the whole family on what would be the best way to begin celebrating and then narrow down your choices to pick the most meaningful new tradition.

Switch up your holiday decorations

Many people use the same decorations year after year and strategically place them within their homes year after year too. Why not splurge this season and get all new decorations? You can even turn it into a family event where every member gets to pick out something new and decide where in the house it will go. Or, if you want to stay with your current decorations, see how many of them you can place in a new spot this year.

Take silly family photos

Although the holidays are a time for celebration, we can often get caught up in the preparation and forget the reasons behind these celebrations. So take a load off by having fun with your friends and family. Dress in your best holiday attire and take funny photos to commemorate the event. Post them to Facebook and Twitter to spread the holiday cheer.  In fact, we’d love to see them – share them on our Facebook page, if you like.

Make your presents this year

Homemade gifts are sometimes the best gifts, so try making something that comes from the heart. Perhaps a scrapbook would be a great gift idea. Or maybe a warm hat and scarf. Think of this as an excuse to sign up for that knitting class you have been talking about!

Attend holiday programs in your community

There are always lots of holiday programs like concerts and plays within the community. Show your support by attending a few. It will be something fun to do on a Saturday night and not to mention, it could be educational too.

Stop into a Grand store and enjoy the festive displays

Each Grand store is decked with holiday delight for your viewing pleasure. Feel free to stop in to any store of your choice and see what the staff has decorated for you, our wonderful customers.

Prepare a new holiday-inspired dish

One great thing about the holidays is the food. Put your chef’s hat on and get to the kitchen to whip up some new, delicious holiday dishes. Try out different recipes to discover which one your friends and family are sure to drool over. After it’s a hit, consider making it again for the coming years.

Donate to a charity

As we have been giving back to the community through the Grand Gestures program this year, we are encouraging you to give back, too. Pick a charity that is dear to you and supply it with a generous donation of time, money or supplies. As this is a season for giving, give back to those who are really in need. Think about the positive outcome it will bring about and perhaps choose to donate to a charity every year around the holidays.

We bring these ideas to you with fun and happiness in mind and wish each and every one of you happy holidays! May your days be blessed with holiday cheer!

Employees of Grand Home Furnishings stores in Johnson City and Kingsport, along with employees of the Grand Home Furnishings Warehouse in Gray, donated and delivered 40 twin mattresses to Free Will Baptist Family Ministries’ group home for boys in Greeneville, Tenn., last week.

The donation was part of the company’s efforts to offer its communities 100 “grand gestures” on behalf of the Grand Happiness Foundation and Grand’s 100th anniversary.

Suzy Cloyd, director of human resources at Free Will Baptist Family Ministries, read about the foundation and reached out to the Grand store in her hometown of Johnson City to learn if the organization qualified for a gesture. Store manager George Hamblen quickly enlisted his peers at the Kingsport store and Gray warehouse to ensure that Grand could meet her need for 40 twin mattresses.

“When we’re able to partner with companies like Grand, we’re able to increase the level of care and ensure the boys are coming into a quality program,” Cloyd said. “This allows us to enhance programs, enhance our physical structure and the environment in general, and allows us to give more to these boys.”

Youth from throughout the state reside at the boys’ home, which has the distinction of being the only service provider in Tennessee with a Level II Enhanced Alcohol & Drug program for young men. According to the state service providers ratings system, Family Ministries ranks first in placement stability, with the highest percentage of children leaving programs to live in a permanent family setting , and the highest percentage of children successfully remaining in their permanent family setting.

“As members of the community, we’re really the ones gaining from these programs,” Hamblen said. “It’s very humbling to learn about great services for our youth like Family Ministries, and be able to help ease their financial burden to make it easier for them to do their work for our kids.”

The Grand Happiness Foundation was founded based on Grand Home Furnishings’ century-old belief that happiness begins in the home. The foundation’s mission is to bring happiness and hope to those in need, specifically focused on the safety, health and education of women and children in our community.

Read this article online at timesnews.net

Employees of Grand Home Furnishings stores in Johnson City and Kingsport, along with employees of the Grand Home Furnishings Warehouse in Gray, donated and delivered 40 twin mattresses to Free Will Baptist Family Ministries’ group home for boys in Greeneville, Tenn., last week.

The donation was part of the company’s efforts to offer its communities 100 “grand gestures” on behalf of the Grand Happiness Foundation and Grand’s 100th anniversary.

Suzy Cloyd, director of human resources at Free Will Baptist Family Ministries, read about the foundation and reached out to the Grand store in her hometown of Johnson City to learn if the organization qualified for a gesture. Store manager George Hamblen quickly enlisted his peers at the Kingsport store and Gray warehouse to ensure that Grand could meet her need for 40 twin mattresses.

“When we’re able to partner with companies like Grand, we’re able to increase the level of care and ensure the boys are coming into a quality program,” Cloyd said. “This allows us to enhance programs, enhance our physical structure and the environment in general, and allows us to give more to these boys.”

Youth from throughout the state reside at the boys’ home, which has the distinction of being the only service provider in Tennessee with a Level II Enhanced Alcohol & Drug program for young men. According to the state service providers ratings system, Family Ministries ranks first in placement stability, with the highest percentage of children leaving programs to live in a permanent family setting , and the highest percentage of children successfully remaining in their permanent family setting.

“As members of the community, we’re really the ones gaining from these programs,” Hamblen said. “It’s very humbling to learn about great services for our youth like Family Ministries, and be able to help ease their financial burden to make it easier for them to do their work for our kids.”

The Grand Happiness Foundation was founded based on Grand Home Furnishings’ century-old belief that happiness begins in the home. The foundation’s mission is to bring happiness and hope to those in need, specifically focused on the safety, health and education of women and children in our community.

Read this article online at www.timesnews.net