Following a triple threat of violent storms plaguing Middle Tennessee throughout Wednesday, the Heart of Tennessee Chapter has now opened a Respite Center at New Vision Baptist Church, located at 1750 N. Thompson Lane in Murfreesboro. 

The Respite Center offers a safe place to stay, food, drinks, and restrooms for those affected by the storms. 

The center will remain open until the needs of the community can be further assessed. 

As the weather continues to change we will further evaluate the nature of the emergency needs of those affected by the storms.
 
How to Help:
You can help your local Red Cross assist local disaster victims in our community 24 hours a day, 7 days a week by making a contribution to the Heart of Tennessee Chapter at 501 Memorial Blvd., Murfreesboro, TN 37129 or online at www.midtnredcross.org.  

At this time all of the immediate spontaneous volunteer needs for the Heart of Tennessee Chapter have been met for this disaster. 
 
The American Red Cross does not accept or solicit small, individual donations or collections of items for emergency relief purposes.

Small items such as collections of food, used clothing, and shoes often must be cleaned, sorted, and repackaged which impedes the valuable resources of money, time, and personnel that are needed for other aspects of our relief operation.

The Red Cross, in partnership with other agencies, suggests that the best use for those types of donations is to support needy agencies within your community that are capable of processing these items. 

Community members who have items to donate such as bottled water, non-perishable foods, diapers, baby food and formula, cleaning supplies and other necessity items are encouraged to do so through our partner agencies by calling 2-1-1.
 
The Heart of Tennessee Chapter of the American Red Cross provides vital emergency assistance to help victims of local disasters in Rutherford, Bedford, Cannon, Franklin, Coffee & Moore counties.

Over the past year the Chapter trained nearly 15,000 people in CPR & First Aid, Babysitting and Aquatics training, and provided pre-deployment briefings and emergency communications for over 640 active duty military personnel and their families.

More than 13,177 pints of life-saving blood were collected from the community last year.

All of these services are made possible by more than 320 dedicated local Red Cross volunteers as well as through generous gifts from the local community.

To get more information please call 615) 893-4272 or log on to www.midtnredcross.org.