Daughters of the American Revolution’s Samuel Doak Chapter Honors Frances Branner and Janet McLane with 2016 Community Service Awards

The Daughters of the America Revolution, Samuel Doak Chapter, honored two very special ladies Saturday morning with their Community Service Awards for 2016. At a luncheon at First United Methodist Church in Dandridge, Frances Branner and Janet McLane were honored, surrounded by friends and family.

Gloria Beauchamp offered the following about Branner and McLane:

Staff Photo by Angie Stanley

Started in 1995, the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution established a Community Service Awards Committee for individual chapters and states to seek out and give formal public acknowledgments for unpaid voluntary achievements of organizations or individuals. The nominees must meet several criteria, including leadership skills and high core values and ethics, to receive the honor. Both Branner and McLane have met and exceeded the criteria, and were nominated by Ed Franklin. Both women have worked tirelessly to make a positive impact in the Dandridge Community.

A native of Dandridge, Tennessee Frances Branner has actively engaged over the past forty years in devoting ‘her time’ and ‘her money’ towards the Jefferson County Community Residents through her ‘humanitarian services’. Her ethical and theological ‘humanitarian services’ began in 1974 when the owner of an empty house in Dandridge allowed Frances to use the building rent-free for the purpose of establishing the ‘House of Prayer”. Her church reached out to the under privileged who managed to subsist below poverty level by providing food, clothing, and home items for the Jefferson County Community Residents… People in Need. If someone had ‘a need’… She was there to help them. She became known as Pastor Frances throughout the Jefferson County area for her generosity towards helping the less fortunate.

Food donations from local citizens helped her open the ‘House of Prayer’ doors for Thanksgiving and Christmas Dinners for the People in Need. The local folks that were home bound and unable to attend these holiday dinners received their holiday feast delivered to their home. The young children attending the Christmas dinner received an additional gift… A ‘NEW TOY’.

In 2006 Pastor Frances originated the ‘Soap Ministry’. “She purchases or collects toiletry and hygiene products, such as bath soap, liquid dish and laundry detergents, as well as toilet paper, to dispense to people who can’t afford to buy these articles. Food stamp or EBT cards [electronic benefits transfer] are only good for the purchase of foods, not household cleaners or personal toiletries, so sometimes people need a little extra help getting hold of these items.” Each month Pastor Frances hand – assembles and delivers thirty-five gift bags to ‘families in need’.

Unfortunately, this 100 year old wooden structure known as the ‘House of Prayer’ on Hopewell Street, Dandridge, TN was destroyed by a fire on May 25, 2014.

No one knows the total number of lives that have been touched, total number of volunteers that aided assistance in their time and donations over the past forty –years, but, we do know that Pastor Frances Branner is an outstanding role model for helping people in need within the Jefferson County Communities and this woman deserves to be acknowledged for her ‘FORTY YEARS of HUMANITARIAN SERVICES’. Therefore, it is my pleasure to recommend Pastor Frances Branner to be awarded the: Samuel Doak Chapter, NSDAR – 2016 Community Service Award.

Staff Photo by Angie Stanley

A resident of Dandridge, Tennessee Janet McLane has actively engaged over the past twenty years in devoting ‘her time’, ‘her money’, and ‘her artistic creativity’ in helping the people of Hamblen County and Jefferson County. Many of her accomplishments include the following.

In Hamblen County, Janet is in her tenth year sharing ‘her artistic creativity’ combined with her Master Gardner Certificate knowledge earned at the University of Tennessee Agriculture Extension Department in her yearly ‘volunteer fundraiser services’ for the Spring Time in the Garden at Rose Center, Morristown, Tennessee.

Whereas, in Jefferson County, she shares her Master Gardner knowledge at Glenmore Victorian Mansion [APTPA] Association for the Preservation of Tennessee Antiquities as Chairman of ‘Flowers and Herbs Vendors’ at their yearly fundraiser Glenmore Garden Market. Janet is credited for originating the Glenmore Garden Market sixteen years ago. For the past ten years she has held the position of ‘Co – Chairman’. Also, she has held the position of ‘Vendor Chairman’ for two years.

Janet’s Leadership Skills enabled her to organize and create The Glenmore Gleanings Cookbook 2003 for an additional fundraiser. Janet McLane, Editor was responsible for this books’ success with a second printing request for publication creating additional fundraiser revenue.

The Scots – Irish Festival held in Dandridge, Tennessee welcomed’ community service volunteer’ Janet McLane on their committee for organizing and planning this event each year since it originated in 2006. She has been on this committee for the past ten years.

Dandridge, TN is home of the Wilderness Weavers Guild and you will find President McLane exercising her ‘artistic creativity’ with her fellow fiber art weavers for the past twenty years. During the past ten years, Janet has been utilizing her weaving expertise into her latest volunteer community service fundraiser: Weaving Silk – Tie Chair Seats and selling these chairs to generate money for the SOAP MINISTRY originated by Pastor Frances Branner of The House of Prayer, in Dandridge, Tennessee.

Janet Alander McLane has demonstrated that she is an outstanding role model for helping people in the Hamblen and Jefferson County Communities and this woman deserves to be acknowledged for her ‘TWENTY YEARS of HUMANITARIAN SERVICES’. Therefore, it is my pleasure to recommend Janet Alander McLane to be awarded the: Samuel Doak Chapter, NSDAR – 2016 Community Service Award.