The Samaritan Center
Help for today. Hope for tomorrow.
Our Leadership
The Samaritan Center Staff
Erin Westberg
Executive Director
Aimee Taylor
Executive Assistant
Keith Heming
Director of Operations
Amy Ladd Gray
Director of Social Services
Sherri Poston Smith
Director of Communications and Volunteers
Doug Frood
Controller
Kimberly Howard
Partner Engagement Coordinator
The Samaritan Center Board of Directors
The Samaritan Center is grateful for those who generously lend their time, support, advice, and talents to this ministry as board members.
Chairman: J. Franklin Farrow
Chief Operating Officer, Independent Healthcare Properties, LLC
Vice Chairman: Sam Walter
Retired Principal at Daisy Elementary School in Soddy Daisy, TN
Marc Walwyn
Attorney at Law
Rev. Louisa (Lou) T. Parsons
Rector, St. Francis of Assisi
Cindy Nash RN, BSN, IBCLC.
Nurse Home Visitor, Erlanger Nurse Family Partnership
Andrew Morkert
City of Collegedale Building & Codes Director
Peter Kulakov
Senior Pastor, Ooltewah Seventh-day Adventist Church
Bruce Jacobs
Director of Guest Services, Cohutta Springs Youth Camp
Dawson Halliday
Owner & Operator, Ooltewah Chik-Fil-A
Danny Garcia
CEO, Deron LLC / CA-TN
Jay Cole
Church Administrator, Collegedale Seventh-day Adventist Church
Jackie Brown
Retiree – McKee Foods Corporation, Human resources, Professional/Management
Our History in the Community
The Samaritan Center was birthed out of a branch of the Seventh-day Adventist-based Dorcas Society more than 90 years ago. Ladies from the Collegedale SDA church in Apison, TN would gather and mend donated clothing to help meet local needs or send it to places stricken by war, famine, or natural disasters.
In 1981, five local SDA churches came together to expand their community service programs in one centralized location. Under the guidance of Bill Hulsey, Adventist Community Services opened its doors to the public in October of 1986 off of Old Lee Highway with one paid employee and several dedicated volunteers.
After just ten years, the programs and services provided by Adventist Community Services had grown so much that it was time for a move. In 1996, a space in what had been Red Food Store in Ooltewah, TN became available, and the ministry and mission moved to its current home we know today, with a new name: The Samaritan Center.
As of 2024, The Samaritan Center employs 50 full-time employees and has hundreds of volunteers who help by sharing their time, money, and donations. The ministry continues to operate in the spirit of the Inn of the biblical story of the Good Samaritan. We are a community resource where individuals and families from more than 70 area agencies, businesses, civic organizations, schools, and churches of all denominations come together to minister to people in crisis.
The Samaritan Center Ministry Info
Our Mission
We are on a mission to meet the basic physical, spiritual, and social needs of people in our area, using the ministry of Jesus as our model.
Seventh-day Adventists Believe...
Though religious beliefs play no role in the Samaritan Center’s provision of services, our ministry was founded on Seventh-day Adventist principles and is affiliated with the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Some of the key beliefs of the Adventist Church include the following: The Bible is the word of God. God has a plan for our lives. Jesus is the Son of God. God cares about the quality of our lives. God wants to spend time with us. A complete listing of the Seventh-day Adventist beliefs may be found on the Church Website.
Annual Report
Careers at the Samaritan Center
If you are interested in working for the Samaritan Center, stop by the office and fill out a job application, or apply online.
Volunteer Coordinator
The Samaritan Center is a social services agency that operates a thrift store and a volunteer program. We provide rent, mortgage, and utility assistance, food, personal care items, school supplies, and much more to our neighbors in need. Our mission is to meet the basic physical, spiritual, and social needs of people in our area, using the ministry of Jesus as our model.
The role of the Volunteer Coordinator is to support the Partner Engagement Coordinator, who is responsible for the Volunteer program by performing administrative, organizational, and operational tasks. The Volunteer Coordinator ensure that volunteers are trained and supported by encouraging them to continue contributing to the Samaritan Center.
Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following: