Rich Dansereau Loan Officer Knoxville TN

and

This week Shoney's of Knoxville, Inc, in conjunction with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children will be hosting a FREE Photo ID event at several metro-Knoxville area locations. This is a great opportunity to collect vital information such as a color photo, fingerprints, height, weight, date of birth, and a medical profile collected together for easy parental access in the event you child is ever reported missing!

If you would like more information, you can contact:

Annie LaLonde

Shoney’s of Knoxville, Inc.

Marketing and Advertising Director

9720 Parkside Drive Knoxville, TN 37922

865-690-6331 Office

865-740-5652 Direct

865-690-6334 Fax

annie@shoneysknox.com

This event has three days scheduled in August! There will also be appearances by the Knoxville Police Department/Safety City, the East Tennessee Children’s Hospital, Safe Kids, Star 102.1, WVLT TV 8, Knoxville News-Sentinel, Cover Kids TN, Knoxville Fire Department (Knoxville appearances), and the Shoney Bear!

Knoxville Center Mall, Center Court - MAP

Friday, August 22, 2008

1:00 PM to 7:00 PM

West Town Mall, Amphitheater - MAP

Saturday, August 23, 2008

11:00 AM to 5:00 PM

Foothills Mall, Center Stage - MAP

Sunday, August 24, 2008

12:00 PM to 6:00 PM

About the Author

If you are in the market to purchase a home or even refinance an existing loan and you want a loan officer that will walk with you every step of the way, then contact Danny or Rich of the Thornton Team at Home America Mortgage today. We can have you pre-approval in as little as 4 hours. You can visit our website or send an email to thorntonteam@homeamericamortgage.com or call us @ 865-951-0522.

Knoxville as a city is heavily influenced by it proximity to the Great Smokey Mountains with its rich Appalachian culture. Knoxville, because it is home to the University of Tennessee, is also heavily influenced by the diverse intellectual and artistic curiosity that characterizes any major university. The convergence of these influences have given rise to a number of distinctively diverse hot spots around town. One of the most distinctive of these is the World Grotto!

World Grotto is located at 16 Market Square in Knoxville (click HERE for a map). They are open: Tueday thru Wednesday 5:00 PM until 1:00 AM, Thursday thru Friday 5:00 PM until 3:00 AM, Saturday 8:00 PM thru 3:00 AM, and Sunday varies.

This unique Knoxville hot spot is characterized by an art gallery and marketplace on the main level which highlights art from around the area and around the world! There is also an underground performance grotto! This one-of-a-kind crystal grotto, so called because its walls are adorned with 8,000 pounds of crystals and semi-precious stones, provides the perfect place to highlight some of the best performances in dance, spoken word, music, and world DJs. Additionally, World Grotto hosts classes, seminars, films, private parties, corporate events, art openings, wine and liquor tastings, charitable fund-raisers, and masked balls.

Here is a sampling of some of the upcoming events at World Grotto:

Aug 14 2008 11:45P Bass Block Beats with Mic 1 & Simon Belmont

Aug 15 2008 6:00P Poetry Slam (Every 1st & 3rd Friday of the Month)

Aug 15 2008 10:00P Shadowwax

Aug 16 2008 10:00P Quartjar - Randall Brown Turns __!!

Aug 18 2008 7:00P Grotto Hoop Group (Weekly)

Aug 18 2008 8:00P Salsa Dance Lessons & Free Style (Weekly)

Aug 20 2008 6:00P Girls Night Out: Martinis, Manicures, & Massages (Weekly)

Aug 21 2008 10:00P Zach Deputy

Aug 21 2008 11:45P Bass Block Beats with Mic 1 & Simon Belmont

Aug 22 2008 10:00P Garage A Go-Go: Bitter Pills & The Infidels 45 DANCE PARTY

Aug 23 2008 10:00P Erick Baker

Aug 28 2008 11:45P Bass Block Beats with Mic 1 & Simon Belmont

Aug 29 2008 12:00A Dual Boot

Aug 30 2008 10:00P Bellfield w/Arpetrio

Sep 4 2008 11:45P Bass Block Beats with Mic 1 & Simon Belmont

Sep 6 2008 12:00A International Dancy Party (Weekly)

Sep 10 2008 10:00P TEA LEAF GREEN with Moonalice

Sep 11 2008 10:00P Albannach w/Cutthroat Shamrock

Sep 11 2008 11:45P Bass Block Beats with Mic 1 & Simon Belmont

Sep 12 2008 10:00P Garage Deluxe CD Release Show

Sep 13 2008 10:00P The Coveralls

Sep 18 2008 11:45P Bass Block Beats with Mic 1 & Simon Belmont

Sep 20 2008 10:00P New Riders of the Purple Sage

Sep 25 2008 11:00P Bass Block Beats with Mic 1 & Simon Belmont

Sep 26 2008 10:00P Dubconscious

Sep 27 2008 6:00P Funktion 2.0

Oct 24 2008 10:00P MoonTaxi

About the Author

If you are in the market to purchase a home or even refinance an existing loan and you want a loan officer that will walk with you every step of the way, then contact Danny or Rich of the Thornton Team at Home America Mortgage today. We can have you pre-approval in as little as 4 hours. You can visit our website or send an email to thorntonteam@homeamericamortgage.com or call us @ 865-951-0522.

The First Annual Irish Festival will be held this upcoming Saturday July 26, 2008 from 10:00 AM until 10:00 PM at World's Fair Park in Knoxville. Click HERE for directions. Tickets for Adults are $10 and can be purchased at the gate; Children are FREE! The festival will be a celebration of the continuing contributions the Irish community has been making since the earliest days of European settlement in East Tennessee. The stated mission of the festival is:

The mission of the Irish Festival of Knoxville, Inc. is to educate the community of East Tennessee of the Irish heritage of this region, with educational ties to environmental practices as a zero-waste festival, while raising funds for designated worthy public service agencies and charities.

An exciting aspect of this festival will be its stated goal to be zero waste and carbon-neutral! The organizers are using the traditional practice of carbon offsetting through the purchase of clean energy such as wind, farm animal wastes, and landfill gases. The festival organizers go beyond this carbon offsetting by incorporating community education on lifestyle changes that can reduce carbon emissions.

The Irish community has a long history of supporting police officers and firefighters. This event will carry on that support as the proceeds will benefit five very worthy organizations:

Knoxville Firefighters Association

Fraternal Order Police Volunteer Lodge #2

Knoxville Volunteer Rescue Squad

Remote Area Medical Foundation

The Ulster Project - The Ulster Project International Website

There will be a Kids Zone with all the fun diversions you would expect, a moon walk, a fun slide, face painting, arts and crafts, and camel rides! As children are free what better way to spend an afternoon. There will also be a multitude of vendors exhibiting and selling traditional Irish crafts, and environmental organizations promoting "green living." In addition to the Kids Zone and the vendors, there two distinct areas that will have entertainment:

Performance Lawn Stage

Market Stage

10:00 - 11:00 Heart of Oak Band - Irish Ballads

11:15 - 11:45 Irish Dancers

12:00 - 12:45 SECC Cloggers

3:30 - 4:30 Irish Dancers - Four Leaf Peat Band - Traditional Irish

6:00 - 7:00 Shamrock Road Band - Irish Ballads

Main Stage

1:00 - 2:00 Opening Ceremony

2:15 - 3:15 Lahinch Mob Band - Irish Rock 'n Roll

4:30 - 6:00 Chill Billies Band - Southern Rock 'n Roll

7:00 - 8:00 Soul Water Band - Southern Rock Blues

8:15 - 9:15 Lahinch Mob Band - Irish Rock 'n Roll

9:30 - 10:00 Grand Finale

Amphitheater Schedule

9:00 - 10:00 CPR

10:00 - 11:00 Fairytale Photography

11:00 - 12:00 Safe Kids Coalition

12:00 - 12:15 Ijams Nature Center

12:15 - 1:00 Festival Charities

2:15 - 2:45 Earthborn Products Co.

2:45 - 3:15 City of Knoxville

3:15 - 3:45 Knoxville Recycling Coalition

3:45 - 4:15 Tennessee Valley Earth Partnership

4:15 - 4:45 East Tennessee Clean Fuels Coalition

4:45 - 5:15 Knoxville Police - K-9 Demo

As part of this festival there will also be a semi-formal Green Tie Event on Friday the 25th. This event is $75 per ticket with all proceeds benefiting the five charities. This event will be held from 8:00 PM until 11:00 PM in the Sunsphere at World's Fair Park. The event will feature a live Irish band, heavy hors d'oeuvres, wine and beer, and door prizes. If you are interested in attending this event, click HERE to download the invitation in pdf format!

This is the first of what is planned to be an annual event! If you are in the Knoxville area on the 26th and would like a day of fun and diversion, check out the Irish Festival! It is a green event!

About the Author

If you are in the market to purchase a home or even refinance an existing loan and you want a loan officer that will walk with you every step of the way, then contact Danny or Rich of the Thornton Team at Home America Mortgage today. We can have you pre-approval in as little as 4 hours. You can visit our website or send an email to thorntonteam@homeamericamortgage.com or call us @ 865-951-0522.

With all the music history, from Memphis on the western border, Nashville in the north central part, and the Appalachian Mountains forming the eastern border of the state of Tennessee, Knoxville is fortunate to have "The Official State Theatre of Tennessee." The Tennessee Theatre opened October 1, 1928 with almost 2,000 seats. From the Czechoslovakian crystals in the French-style chandeliers to the overall Spanish-Moorish style, the Chicago architects, Graven & Mayger, incorporated a hodgepodge of design elements from all parts of the world. The overall effect is visually stunning and provides an intimate setting in which to see some of the most acclaimed performers from around the world. The theatre underwent a complete renovation lasting from June 2003 until its grand reopening on January 14, 2005. The renovations cost about $25.5 million and was funded through both public and private donations. Included in the renovation was the Wurlitzer which originally cost $50,000 and was part of the theatre when it originally opened. This magnificent pipe organ, termed "The Princess Elenoir, the Jewel of the Great Smoky Mountains" has its very pipes embedded in the theater's walls!

These places, like The Tennessee Theatre which is now a part of the National Register of Historic Places, are more than just old buildings that receive passing glances. These places hold history in the very plaster of their walls. The necessity to preserve historically significant places is an imperative. In this time which sees many of our nation's cultural and historical cathedrals succumb to the brute force of the wrecking ball or explosives, it has never been more important for grassroots efforts to say no! No to the wrecking balls! We live in an enormous country with lots of space. There is no need to demolish these living witnesses to history. If you need a new theatre or ball field, why not renovate those that are already there? The cost to renovate and modernize might be high, but so is the cost of history relegated only to fading photos and memories. While I have always been an advocate of progress, progress does not have to be built on the ruins of history. Progress can be a natural outgrowth of the history's foundation. I do not believe that progress and history are antithetical. I hope you enjoy the picture below that are thanks to The Historic Tennessee Theatre. While you look at the photos, think of the historic places in your town, with the faded murals and stained glass windows that spurred your imagination as a child.

About the Author

If you are in the market to purchase a home or even refinance an existing loan and you want a loan officer that will walk with you every step of the way, then contact Danny or Rich of the Thornton Team at Home America Mortgage today. We can have you pre-approval in as little as 4 hours. You can visit our website or send an email to thorntonteam@homeamericamortgage.com or call us @ 865-951-0522.

Being so close to Nashville, the unchallenged capital of country music, we feel the music. At the state's western border is Memphis, the home of "the King" Elvis Presley, Sun Studios, and the birthplace of both Rock & Roll and the Blues, which inspires us because they are distinct American creations. And closer to home, the mountains of Appalachia sing from our experience, our heart, and our spirit. Tennessee may not be the first place that pops into your mind when you think of music, but it should rank right up there with Detroit, New York City, Austin, Miami, and Los Angeles.

With these diverse musical influences, artists of all sorts are drawn to every corner of our state. Whether it is Maryville's Foothills Fall Festival coming in October or the Volunteer Jam that happens at Smokies Park in Sevierville tomorrow, we are often the willing hosts to some legendary and novice performers. The Volunteer Jam is an annual event for Knoxville and the surrounding area. The tickets are very affordable at $39 and $49 dollars with children under 3 years of age being FREE! The facility even allows personal photography of the performers from your seat! Gates open at 6:00 PM with the show starting at 7:30 PM. Now who are those performers???

The Legendary musician, Charlie Daniels!

Iconic 80's band 38 Special!

The Wolf, Shooter Jennings!

About the Author

If you are in the market to purchase a home or even refinance an existing loan and you want a loan officer that will walk with you every step of the way, then contact Danny or Rich of the Thornton Team at Home America Mortgage today. We can have you pre-approval in as little as 4 hours. You can visit our website or send an email to thorntonteam@homeamericamortgage.com or call us @ 865-951-0522.