GIVING BACK
Giving Back to Our Communities
Davenport Group may be headquartered in Lewisburg, Tennessee, but our team lives and works in small towns and big cities all across America. From our roots in middle Tennessee to both coasts and everywhere in between, Davenport Group gives back to the communities we call home.
Our Tennessee Roots
When they first considered making the move to Lewisburg, Tennessee, Sonia and Paul considered the opportunity to live among extended family a special gift. And it was to this lively little place that Sonia and Paul moved, returning to Sonia’s roots among the rolling hills of middle Tennessee. Soon Sonia and Paul purchased a historic building downtown. Once home to a bustling law firm, the building stood empty for more than 30 years. Recently refurbished into a modern office complex, now Davenport Group headquarters call Lewisburg home.
Having been first established in St. Paul, Minnesota, now the Davenport Group corporate office resides in this hamlet with its easy access to Interstate-65, just north of NASA’s diversified space center in Huntsville, Alabama, and south of Nashville’s city lights. Home to more than 50 industrial and manufacturing companies, plus vineyards, craft breweries, and a thriving music industry, Lewisburg, Tennessee is a community that values the old and rallies around the new. Located less than an hour south of Nashville, this small city of twelve thousand has held onto its Tennessee traditions, music festivals, Tennessee walking horse competitions, and local barbeque contests. Sonia, Paul, and Davenport Group are excited to call Lewisburg, a town where tradition and progress meet, home.
Knowing the value of investing in their local community, Sonia and Paul joined Rotary, as well as giving to their county’s homeless shelter, public high schools, and several other non-profits. Davenport Group seeks to give back to all local communities where team members live, whether giving monetary gifts to tee ball teams, youth sponsorships, or other charitable organizations across the country. Keep reading to learn more about our current charity partners.
HOPEtown
HOPEtown is a non-profit devoted to serving the people of Lewisburg, Tennessee, especially the vulnerable living on the margins. Frank Sullivan is the HOPEtown director and with his team of volunteers, they provide food, hygiene products, clothing, furniture, household items, assistance with homelessness, and mentoring. The non-profit works to establish close partnerships with several churches, businesses, civic organizations, and individuals in the community.
Furthermore, HOPEtown provides safety and shelter for victims of domestic violence through their New Beginnings Domestic Violence Center, and they also do light home repair and maintenance through their Hands of Hope ministry. And their Bright Ideas summer program is one of the many ways they serve and work with children in need of extra attention.
Feed My Starving Children
As a nonprofit organization, Feed My Starving Children (FMSC) is called to feed starving children across the globe. You will hear the organization say this again and again: “We want to reach everyone, until all are fed.” This means reaching truly hard-to-reach people and places. With nearly 3 billion meals shipped to date, FMSC believes hope starts with food. FMSC meals are developed by food science and nutrition professionals to supplement nutritional needs and reduce problems with malnutrition. FMSC works with food distribution partners that stay with communities for the long haul, empowering them to move from relief to development.
Local High School Scholarships
Since Sonia and Paul’s move to Lewisburg in 2016, they’ve built relationships with both Marshall County High School and Cornersville High School. Davenport Group partners with the administrations at both schools to award Dell laptops to the top 10 high school seniors each year.
Marshall County Public Online Learning Organization
As part of the economic development initiative of Lewisburg, Tennessee, MarCO POLO is an eight-week in-person and virtual job training program that trains students in Zoom, Google and Microsoft to prepare them for the unique environment of virtual employment.
In Marshall County, women with children under the age of 18 make up 88% of the unemployed population, facing barriers to employment opportunities that include childcare availability, transportation to and from work, and educational attainments or training opportunities. MarCO POLO works to remove these barriers. Recently joining eight other communities participating in the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Community Innovation Academy, MarCO POLO provides a space and training center to teach remote working, entrepreneurship, and computer coding while also providing a co-working and maker space.
Graduates of the workforce development program have been hired by companies such as Nissan, the USDA, and the Tennessee College of Applied Technology. Davenport Group partners with MarCO POLO to help supply the program with computers and materials needed to help train remote workers.
