On December 6, 1984 fate changed the lives of thousands of residents of Morgan and Scott Counties. Patti Melhorn Thomas was killed in an auto accident in Scott County, leaving behind a grieving family. Husband John Thomas and parents George and Shelby Melhorn channeled their sorrow by creating the Unicorn Fund. And, for the past 30 years, this fund has grown into a 501c(3) charity raising hope by helping thousands of families.
To increase operating funds the board of directors enlisted volunteers to help with fair booths, bake sales, beauty pageants, craft shows, angel trees, cookbook/t-shirt sales, and rock-a-thon/talent shows. The creation in 1986 of the Second Time Around Boutique, a clothing store featuring slightly used items, paved the way for the Unicorn Fund to extend its means of helping others. With more money coming in, more help was given. The $3000 in financial assistance distributed in 1986 has grown to to $21,227 distributed thus far in 2015.
Throughout the years many volunteers have stepped up to make the Unicorn Fund grow. The employees of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory - Battelle provided toys to Head Start for over 20 years. The TN Federation of Women's Clubs (currently known as GFWC OF TN) support the Unicorn Fund with clothing items for the Boutique and monetary funds annually. Several of these clubs were and still are pivotal to the growth of the Unicorn Fund.
Another milestone for the Unicorn Fund was the creation of its Scholarship Fund that has provided almost 300 scholarships to students of all six of the Morgan and Scott County high schools. The Fund has also given scholarships to mothers who want to go into nursing and students who have been out of school for a while but want to reconnect and further their education. In 2015 alone the Fund awarded $12,817.00 in scholarships.
In 2010 the Unicorn Fund, in collaboration with the GFWC Tellico Village Woman's Club and the Rock Mission, opened the Unicorn Fund Youth Center in Petros, TN. It provides a place for children in the area to go and participate in activities of exercise, art, music, basketball, and computer education.
The Unicorn Fund volunteers participate in community events such as "Christmas in the Mountains", the Scott County Fair, parades, and the Big South Fork Fly-In. An office in the Boutique is provided to the Salvation Army to facilitate faster assistance to those needing help. And, the Salvation Army helps provide the Fund with supplies for area schools. The Fund's largest event each year is its Christmas Gift Distribution. Over 3000 gifts are provided to needy children throughout the holdiay season in Morgan and Scott counties.
The GFWC Brentwood Woman's Club has been able to donate $6000 to the Unicorn's scholarship fund since 2010 through its fund-raising efforts and twice annually donates clothing and small household goods for the Boutique.
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