| Sources |
- [S104] Cocke County, Tennessee, and its People, Cocke County Heritage Book Committee, (Walsworth Publishing, 1992), 23, 24.
- [S120] A Place Called Home: Our Story, David L. Popiel, Duay O'Neil, et. al., (2006, The Newport Plain Talk / Jones Media Inc.), dpopiel@xtn.net., 26.
- [S24] The Newport Plain Talk, (http://www.newportplaintalk.com), 22 Mar 2007.
Education Foundation to Honor Benny Proffitt
By: Duay O'Neil
Source: The Newport Plain Talk
03-22-2007
Cocke County native Benny Proffitt will be honored by the Cocke County Education Foundation next Thursday, March 29, at their yearly "Celebrating Our Successes" banquet at Carson Springs Conference Center. Proffitt, a 1968 Cocke County High School graduate, founded First Priority of America, Inc., an organization dedicated to bringing Christ to American teenagers and remains as president of the group. First Priority has now spread nationwide, and in recent years, Proffitt has shared the vision and strategy of the organization through various venues such as state and national conferences in all fifty states. The author of A Look at America Through the Eyes of Our Youth (2001) and Charting the Course (2005), Proffitt has also written many manuals and multiple articles designed to support a city and community-wide strategy for reaching the next generation for Christ. He has appeared in Time, on CNN, ABC News, and Family Network Television. The son of Wilma (Bell) Proffitt, Newport, and the late Joe C. Proffitt, he entered Belmont University in Nashville following his high school graduation. Following his graduation from Belmont, Proffitt earned a second degree from Southwestern Theological Seminary, Fort Worth, TX. He taught and coached basketball at the high school level for eight years while serving as a bi-vocational pastor and has also served as a full-time youth pastor for twenty years. Proffitt and his wife of thirty-three years, Marilou, have three children and four grandchildren. They reside in Nashville. In addition to his mother, Proffitt's local relatives include one brother, Joe C. Proffitt, Jr., and two sisters, Marilyn (Proffitt) Benson and Louise (Proffitt) Hux, their families, and numerous aunts, uncles, and cousins. "We are delighted that Benny will be returning to his home county for this event," said Dr. Rich Lloyd, Foundation chairman. "We are also ecstatic that Dr. Kenneth Olden, our 2005 honoree, has agreed to return to present this year's award to Proffitt," Lloyd continued. "It is traditional that the previous recipient present the award to the new honoree." Tickets for the banquet are $25 each and may be purchased from Lloyd, Larry B. Blazer, Don Hurst, Tommy Bible, or any other members of the Education Foundation. For more information, call (423) 623-7821.
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