Presenting Sponsors
Co-chairs
Robin Andrews and Ryan McLaughlin Wood

2023 Goodwill Impact Awards 

Each year, Goodwill Industries of Middle Tennessee celebrates the employees and clients who have achieved success through perseverance and the power of work as well as community partners who help advance Goodwill’s mission of changing lives through education, training and employment. This year, we will host an awards presentation event on Thursday, October 26, 2023 at Nashville’s Music City Center.

The 2023 Impact Awards are presented by Pinnacle and Amazon, hosted by Robin Andrews and Ryan McLaughlin Wood, and emceed by NewsChannel 5 Anchor Rhori Johnston.

Thank you for sponsoring the 2023 Goodwill Impact Awards

Presenting Sponsors
PinnacleLogo-01
Catalysts

Enchiridion Foundation

Neal Brad Thomason

Champions
Print
Maxwell Roofing Logo

T&T Family Foundation

Empower
Autow
Baird
GarneyConstructionLogo
HUB-Horizontal-Full-Colour-RGB_hr
Messer
wrnewman-logo-stacked-2
Advocates & Friends

Acuff & Associates, Inc.

Bank of Tennessee

Tom Black Center for Selling

CAPTRUST

Colliers

FINN Partners

FirstBank

H.G. Hill Realty Company LLC

Holder Construction

Legends Bank

Morgan Stanley Wealth Management

Nashville Electric Service

Truist Financial

The Wilson Group

Partner with us for 2023 Goodwill Impact Awards  

SPONSORSHIP
CONTACTS: 

Beth Alexander
VP of Development
beth.alexander@givegw.org
615-346-1269

Niketa Hailey-Hill
Development Manager

niketa.hailey-hill@givegw.org
615-346-1230

2022 Goodwill Impact Award Winners  

ACHIEVER OF THE YEAR

Anthony Fanning

Presented by Diversified Trust

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Anthony Fanning, a married father of six, got out of prison in 2014. After spending months trying to find a job while his wife supported the family, he came to Goodwill Career Solutions seeking help. He attended a job fair, took a computer class and received other services. Then, he completed Goodwill’s Construction and Weatherization Training Program, a four-week course that provides instruction in safety, use of power tools, blueprints and more. Anthony formed a bond with the program’s instructor, Tim Kahn. In February of 2015 — with Kahn’s help — Anthony founded his own home repair service. In May of this year, Anthony embraced another opportunity: He is now a trainer working with students in the construction program to help them find success as he did. 

AMBASSADOR OF THE YEAR

Mary Hance, “Ms. Cheap”

Presented by T&T Family Foundation

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Over 45 years at the Nashville Banner, The Tennessean and now at Main Street Media, journalist Mary Hance has delivered news readers trust. For 30 years, through her Ms. Cheap columns, she has helped Tennesseans stretch their hard-earned dollars. Many of those columns and Hance’s appearances on NewsChannel 5’s Talk of the Town have featured Goodwill. The awareness Hance creates in the community about Goodwill’s sales, discounts and environmentally sustainable operations, has helped the nonprofit to sustain and expand its mission services.

DAVID B. LIFSEY SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENT

Daniella McNair

Presented by American Paper & Twine

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As a young person, Daniella McNair of Clarksville was gifted in art, music and academics. She attended Austin Peay State University to study graphic design, but she dropped out before completing her bachelor’s degree. She wound up working as a janitor for a large retailer and taking other part-time jobs. She struggled financially, losing a job during the pandemic and at one point spending two months in a homeless shelter. While searching for jobs online, she learned about Goodwill’s Google IT Support Professional Certificate program. Daniella studied hard and graduated from the program in about a year. Afterward, she landed a position with DYOPATH, a leading Managed Service Provider offering trusted IT solutions. Daniella’s income increased by 33%, stabilizing her finances, and she finds her new career both rewarding and fascinating.  

LAVOI-KATZ AWARD RECIPIENT

Johnny McCann

Presented by Neal Brad Thomason

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Johnny McCann had not held a job before his mother died when he was 40. She and his two brothers had been his protectors as he grew up with a disability in Section 8 housing in Nashville. Her passing left Johnny depressed and seeking purpose. His brother Larry McCann, who received conservatorship of Johnny, and Habilitation and Training Services (H.A.T.S.) helped him to find a job with Goodwill in Hendersonville. Johnny recently celebrated his 15th anniversary with Goodwill. He works each day with a H.A.T.S. job coach to sort and place books, media and other donated merchandise onto Goodwill store shelves. He loves interacting with shoppers and co-workers, and he is beloved for his bright smile and cheerful personality. 

MISSION PARTNER OF THE YEAR

Welcome Home Ministries

Presented by BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee Community Trust

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Since 1992, Welcome Home Ministries has provided a ministry of recovery, hope, healing and reconciliation for men who suffer from chronic alcohol and drug addictions. For the past 12 years, the Nashville-based recovery housing operator has partnered closely with Goodwill to help its clients receive skills training and make connections with employers. Last year alone, 20 Welcome Home Ministries clients participated in Goodwill’s Forklift Training Program

DONOR PARTNER OF THE YEAR

Lowe’s

Presented by the Enchiridion Foundation

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Lowe’s is a partner in Goodwill Industries International’s Rising Together Initiative, which seeks to connect more than 1 million people with sustainable careers in skilled trades by 2025. In Middle Tennessee, Lowe’s has supported Goodwill through donations to its construction program as well as by giving an estimated $375,000 in goods — including Christmas items, gardening supplies and power tools — that have been sold in Goodwill stores to support the nonprofit’s mission services. 

EMPLOYER PARTNER OF THE YEAR

Apex Systems

Presented by CoreCivic Foundation

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Apex Systems, a world class technology services business that provides industry insights and experience to deliver solutions that fulfill their clients digital visions, has been partnering with Goodwill and interviewing its clients since 2014. That relationship blossomed in 2018, when Goodwill introduced Grow with Google, a suite of free training programs that prepare clients for careers in information technology. Since that time, Apex has hired eight graduates of Grow with Google programs.

PIONEERS OF THE YEAR

Debbie Grant & Matt Gloster

Presented by Goodwill Industries of Middle Tennessee, Inc.

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Debbie Grant and Matt Gloster led Goodwill’s mission arm for a combined half-century before retiring in August. For 34 years, Grant — a certified case manager who became the nonprofit’s longest-serving employee — attended to the needs of clients while working to maximize Goodwill’s impact in the community. Sixteen years ago, Gloster — a career restaurateur who served on Goodwill’s board of directors — became a key member of its leadership team, directing Goodwill’s mission services and, for several years, its donated goods and retail operations.