Isaiah 117 House Chambliss

Mission: To provide a safe and loving home for children who are awaiting foster care placement.

In 2015 our Founder Ronda Paulson saw that children on the day of their removal are brought to an office building to await placement. On the hardest day of their lives, they sometimes have to sleep on the floor in a conference room or clean up in an office bathroom. But Ronda and her husband Corey asked the question “What if there was a home where children could go when they are removed?” What if there was a safe place with friendly, loving volunteers? What if there was an environment with clean clothes, bath toys, snacks, comfy beds, and toys? What if, instead of cubicles, the traumatized child could see smiles, books, and snuggly blankets? So in 2017 the first Isaiah 117 House was built in Carter County, TN and six years later, on October 16 2023, Chambliss Center for Children and Isaiah 117 House partnered to open the 20th home.

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 child welfare staff can do the necessary paperwork and identify a good placement. The mission of Isaiah 117 House is threefold: – reduce trauma for children awaiting placement – lighten the load for child welfare services – ease the transition for foster families