Variety sponsors a number of important programs for children in Eastern Tennessee, some of which are highlighted below. If you'd like more information on any of these programs, please call us at 865-925-9906 or email us at Varietytennessee@aol.com

kids on the go!

We have learned that what special-needs kids want most is to be active members of their communities. Disabled children need what many of us take for granted: access. As a fundamental part of Variety's national initiative, Kids on the Go! will allow children with physical challenges the freedom to explore the world by providing grants to local individuals and organizations for mobility equipment, as well as by putting more Variety Sunshine Coaches on the road to provide physically-challenged children with much needed transportation to medical and outreach activities.

Through Variety's Kids on the Go!, we intend to foster independence in special-needs children by supplying them with prosthetic limbs, walkers, wheelchairs, specially-designed adaptive bikes and other devices, including home and vehicular ramps. We are slowly expanding this program to target areas in which disabled, disadvantaged children have few or no other options to obtain the mobility equipment they so desperately need. Variety Kids on the Go! will introduce these children to horizons they had only been able to imagine.

zoo day

In cooperation with other Knoxville agencies, Variety sponsors a Day at the Knoxville Zoo for up to a hundred children and their families. We provide free Variety tee-shirts, a full lunch for everyone and all kinds of photo opportunities.

read it and see it

This program offers students the unique opportunity to read a book and then see a free screening of the filmed version. This year’s screening for one thousand selected fourth graders was “Charlotte’s Web.” Last year's screening for selected fifth through eighth graders was "The Chronicles of Narnia, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," from Walt Disney Pictures and Walden Media.

Variety and The Scripps Foundation purchase copies of the books for students in targeted low income Knox County schools to read before the screening. Children who read the book and then complete an essay are invited to the screening. Variety, the Regal Foundation and other corporate sponsors pay for admission tickets.

“C.S. Lewis’ novel is a highly creative and inspiring tale. That’s why we chose The Chronicles of Narnia for our first ‘Read It and See It’ program. We are partnering with terrific groups such as the Scripps Foundation and Regal Foundation to inspire young people to read and reward them with a first class trip to the theatre to see a brand new movie,” said Dena Pinsker, Executive Director of Variety of Eastern Tennessee.

other screenings

In addition, Variety hosts a number of other screenings throughout the year for children with special needs. For example, the Tennessee School for the Deaf and Knox County Schools’ deaf students were treated to an open caption screening of the Disney and Pixar film “The Incredibles” at Regal Cinemas’ Knoxville Center Stadium 10. Prizes, gifts, popcorn and soda were provided to all students who attended the screening.

variety holiday party

We also give a special holiday party each year for 300 children at Regal's Knoxville Center theatre. We serve everyone breakfast, give out gifts, show a movie and take Polaroids of the children with Santa.

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