River City Ball Donates Over $23,000 Back To Community

June 4, 2021

On April 24, 2021, the historic downtown square in Carthage, Tennessee was transformed into a roaring twenties celebration for the third annual River City Ball benefiting The Emmanuel House, a recovery home for women and children. 

Guests arrived on Main Street at the Wilson County Motors Valet and walked down the red carpet for their premier photo sponsored by Lish and Lish Contracting. Chandeliers hung from the trees illuminating the gorgeous courthouse and reflecting the shimmering sequins of beautiful dresses. Big Band Sound flooded Main Street with tunes of the 20’s while attendees grabbed a drink at the Serenity Networks bar, with drinks provided by Lipman Brothers and Carthage Sav-Way, and found their seats to enjoy a plated dinner served by Two Fat Men Catering and sponsored in part by Rackley Roofing Company and Citizens Bank.

After dinner, the Blackwell Realty Kirby Team began the live auction featuring items from many local businesses and painted canvases that were completed on-site by Jenny Ford Penuel and Keith Williams sponsored by HyrdoCare of Lebanon. The silent auction was held at The Rose Building on Third Avenue allowing attendees of the event to sneak a peek at Carthage’s new event center. 

As the auction closed, Redheaded Tech got everyone out on the Success Mortgage Dance Floor to dance the night away under the stars. Cumberland Supply sponsored a Safe Ride Home for anyone in attendance to take advantage of. The evening proved to be the most successful event to date for River City Ball.

River City Ball was created to benefit local non-profits working to improve the quality of life in Smith County. Each year the River City Ball benefits a local organization and also provides a $1,000 scholarship to a graduating high school senior at both Gordonsville High School and Smith County High School. 

Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic the event in 2020 was postponed to 2021. However, Carthage Family Chiropractic generously supported scholarships for two years allowing us to present $4,000 in scholarships despite our event not occurring in 2020. Applicants for the scholarship complete an essay discussing the importance of the River City Ball and the organization being sponsored. The applications are submitted to the committee without names and scored based on length and content. Scholarships were presented to Dominique Hebert (2020) and Kensea Skelton (2021) of Smith County High School and Trinity Davis (2020) and Emily Parker (2021) of Gordonsville High School.

Each year, River City Ball chooses an organization to benefit through an application and presentation process. The purpose is to rotate the cause each year to help organizations grow, not only financially, but through awareness from promotion. This year’s beneficiary was The Emmanuel House, a transitional living facility and temporary shelter where homeless women and children can find housing, spiritual mentorship, transportation, life skill training, education, and access to recovery and social services. The women in this home have deeply impacted the hearts of this community, and River City Ball is proud to announce a donation of $19,835.14 to the Emmanuel House!

River City Ball greatly thanks all the sponsors that went into making this event possible. Please make sure to follow the event on Facebook and Instagram for the most up to date information. If you are interested in applying to be a sponsor or the cause for 2022, please reach out to the committee through social media or at rivercityball@outlook.com

Photo credits go to Annabelle Dempsey