The Balladeer Children’s Program had a terrific time in May, going fishing, enjoying tea parties and doing some community service.
The Balladeer program, a free benefit for Ballad Health employees, is intended to strengthen family bonds and relationships among our Ballad Health family. Activities include visits to area attractions, picnics in local parks, holiday celebrations and activities, sports activities, discount tickets for attractions or events, treats, take-home projects and much more.
Here’s what the Balladeers have been up to lately and what they’ve got coming up.
May events
Mother’s Day Tea Parties – May 9
- Four tea party sessions were held (two at Allandale Mansion in Kingsport and two at Oak Meadows Farm in Greeneville) with almost 200 attendees between both locations!
- Mothers and other maternal figures plus their children enjoyed a tea party, complete with linens, real China and fresh flowers. Lawn games were set up outside, such as croquet, giant Jenga, cornhole and more
- Professional photographers were at both locations capturing special photos of families all dressed up. A dress-up station was provided, with feather boas, fascinators, lace gloves, handkerchiefs, fans, fedoras, bowties – everything you need to be tea party ready! Guests got to keep all items.
- Both parties had local beauty queens in attendance, taking photos with our Balladeer children and even helping with setup/clean-up! We were so grateful for their attendance.
- Attendees played Tea Party Bingo, with winners receiving passes for AMC Theatres. They also had bouquet building stations, where attendees could hand select fresh, locally grown flowers and construct a bouquet.
- A special thank-you to the businesses who worked with us to make this event so special:
- Oak Meadows Farm (venue)
- Allandale Mansion (venue)
- Taylored Venue and Events (catering + games)
- Harvey Farms (flowers)
- Fleur Cottage (flowers)
- Action Rentals (linens + China)
- SV Photography
- Alissa Jean Photography
- Mary Hamilton (coordinator for local beauty queens- Kingsport) – Miss Kingsport, Miss Blue and Gold, Miss Sullivan County, Jr. Miss Kingsport, and Miss Tri-Cities Teen
- April Lynyrd (coordinator for local beauty queens – Greeneville) – Miss East Tennessee and Miss Greene County Teen
Balladeer Service Project – May 16
- About 40 people came to the Early Learning Center on West Market Street in Johnson City to help spruce up the outdoor space for the little ones.
- Families worked in three work sessions to complete the projects.
- Projects included:
- Special mural project – Families worked together to complete a mural on the outbuilding in the play area (similar to paint by numbers).
- Mulching – Families transferred a full truckload on mulch to refresh three different playground areas.
- Planting – Families worked to plant several veggies for little ones to tend to all summer and to taste test new foods.
- We also planted different herbs and strawberries for the same reason.
- Flower bed – Families helped plant various flowering plants to attract butterflies and other safe pollinators.
- Crafting – Families created beautiful stepping stones and painted rocks to decorate around the outdoor space.
- Crafting – Families helped create sit-upons for little ones to use during outdoor learning (sit on them to avoid getting their bottoms dirty/wet).
- Sand – We refreshed the sand pits for the kids.
- Bird feeders/houses – Wild Birds Unlimited provided high-quality bird feeders and birdhouses so children can enjoy seeing bird visitors.
- Pressure washing – Pressure washing was provided for free to clean up the outside of the building and sidewalks.
- Ice cream – Available to all families, courtesy of Creamy Cup
- Special shout-out to the following businesses who donated items for this project:
- Lowe’s (Johnson City)
- Home Depot (Johnson City)
- Evergreen (Kingsport)
- Wild Birds Unlimited
- Appalachian Shine Pressure Washing and Outdoor Services
- Tim Stone at Rustic Ridge Landscaping
- Creamy Cup
- Another special shout-out to our volunteer team members who helped things run smoothly on this day (work sessions ran from 8 a.m.-7 p.m.):
- Carson Alvarado
- Lori English
- Theresa Huff
- Hamlin Wilson
Balladeer Trout Derby – May 30
- Balladeer families had been asking for fishing opportunities on our feedback survey, so we partnered with The Outdoorsmen Inc. to make it happen! More than 170 Balladeers attended.
- The Outdoorsmen Inc. provided the venue, stocked the river with trout just for our event, and helped the kids during the event
- The Outdoorsmen allowed families to stay later past our scheduled event so they could maximize their fishing time.
- The Outdoorsmen provided a bait station, along with extra hooks and sinkers. They also provided a measuring station so kids could see if they caught one of the biggest fish of the day.
- Families were invited to take their trout home if they wanted, or they could donate them to The Outdoorsmen, who give them to local food banks to feed those in need.
- Each Balladeer child received a fishing-themed gift bag.
- If children did not have fishing equipment, we provided them with the equipment – they got to keep the equipment at the end of the event!
Event photos
Greeneville Tea Party
Kingsport Allandale Tea Party
Service projects
Trout Derby
Upcoming events
- June (dates vary) – Family baseball tickets
- Families can sign up to receive tickets to an Appalachian League baseball game of their choosing. Tickets are limited.
- June 20 – Father’s Day Pool Party, Wetlands in Jonesborough
- Saturday, June 20, 6-8 p.m., Wetlands Water Park, 1523 Persimmon Ridge Road, Jonesborough, Tenn. Registration has closed.
- June 20 – Father’s Day Pool Party, Kingsport
- Saturday, June 20, 6:30-8:30 p.m., Kingsport Aquatic Center, 1820 MeadowView Parkway, Kingsport. Registration has closed.
- July 11 – Family Fun Day at Doe River Gorge, Hampton
- Saturday, July 11. More details to come.
- July 25 – Pottery workshop event, Kingsport
- Saturday, July 25. Join us for a session at The Clay Gurus, 119 Shelby St., Kingsport, to create your own pottery pieces! We’ll have four sessions to choose from with different pottery classes. A few weeks after the class, you’ll be invited to come back and glaze the piece you made. More details to come!
- Aug. 1 – Knoxville Zoo
- Saturday, Aug. 1, 5:30 p.m., Knoxville Zoo, Knoxville. Join us for a private Balladeer event; the entire zoo will be open, along with free carousel rides. Concessions and other fun games will be available, as well. Registration for this event is required; more details about this event will be emailed in July.
- Aug. 8 – Drive-in Movie Night at Moonlite Drive-in (Abingdon)
- Saturday, Aug. 8. Join us for a fun Balladeer drive-in movie night! Movie TBD. More information and registration will be sent 2-3 weeks before this event.
- Aug. 15 – BrickUniverse LEGO Fan Expo, Abingdon
- Saturday, Aug. 15, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center, 1 Partnership Circle, Abingdon, Va. This is rescheduled from February. Only for those whose names were drawn in the random ticket drawing.
Reminders
- The Balladeer Children’s Program is now featured on the Ballad Health Teams App! Check the app to find enrollment information, pictures, Balladeer-exclusive discounts and more.
- Balladeer Dollywood Day, which is typically held in May, will be on Sept. 19 this year. Mark your calendars now! NOTE: We know this is the same weekend as the Rod Run in Pigeon Forge. The event manager told us that Dollywood is typically less crowded on that weekend. While heavy traffic is expected in the area, we think it’ll be a great day at Dollywood! More details to come.
- Unless explicitly stated, Balladeer events are limited to the team member and those who live in their immediate household with them.
- Please honor your commitments to attend events and notify us if you can’t attend. When you register and don’t notify us that you won’t be attending, your spots remain empty when they could have been used by other children and families. This also takes away from our budget, resulting in less events being offered throughout the year.
About the Balladeer Children’s Program
While enrolling in the Balladeer Children’s Program is free, there is a cost associated with some of the activities.
IMPORTANT NOTE: The Balladeer Children’s Program is for Ballad Health direct hires who have children between the ages 3-18 years old living in their household. They MUST live with you to qualify for the program.
- Here’s an FAQ about eligibility for the Balladeer Children’s Program, posted to the Balladeer site on the Ballad Health intranet.
- Click here to access the program enrollment form.
- Check out the updated Balladeer Children’s Program site on the Ballad Health intranet.
Once you’re enrolled, please remember that you must register for any Balladeer event you wish to attend. Registration and information are sent via email at least two weeks prior to an event. If you aren’t receiving Balladeer emails, please reach out to Shawna DeHart at shawna.gragg@balladhealth.org.
