On June 7th, 1999 Tennessee’s Community Assistance Corporation (TCAC) was incorporated and a board of directors selected to govern the agency. TCAC became an established 501 c-3 nonprofit organization after breaking off from TAHRA/VISTA Program with Knoxville Community Development Corporation. At the time of incorporation, TCAC was operating one of the largest privately funded VISTA programs in the United States. In 2002, TCAC was asked by the Corporation of National Service to take over the Tennessee READS VISTA project and manage it in Tennessee. TCAC applied for HUD funding was awarded two Resident Opportunity Self Sufficiency Grants (ROSS). These grants reached out to ten public housing communities. The program also began training to promote resident leadership and self-sufficiency for residents living in public housing. TCAC hosted a bi-annual training conference which provided training and guidance on establishing resident councils, resolving community conflict, fundraising and program development.

       In 2001, TCAC branched out again in a desire to serve a specific group of citizens that lived in low income public housing communities. The program was designed to serve elderly and disabled individuals living in the housing authority. TCAC applied and was awarded funding from the Tennessee Commission on National and Community Service, this funding created the Community Cares Program. The program began with ten AmeriCorps members serving in nine housing authorities. In 2004-2005, TCAC was awarded an increase in AmeriCorps members moving the number of volunteers to twenty-six and were able to expand to serve in twenty-four housing authorities. During the 2005-2006 program year, the number of members awarded jumped to fifty-two members, making TCAC the home of the largest statewide AmeriCorps program in Tennessee. In October 2004, the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), The Office on Aging, and AARP nationally recognized the AmeriCorps State Community Cares Program as a “model program” in elder care.

       In 2003, TCAC continued to expand with the Gifts in Kind Program. The program was created to help TCAC partners, other non-profits, and faith based organizations throughout Tennessee provide products and incentives that further each individual agency’s mission. The TCAC Gifts in Kind Program redistributed new products that assist partnering agencies in stretching their service dollars while providing materials and supplies to Tennesseans most in need. Over the years, the Gifts in Kind program has shifted into the Depot Redistribution Program, and is not only offering donations and products to partner agencies, but is also open to the public to provide Hamblen County residents a place to shop merchandise ranging from medicine to clothing and home goods at a discounted price.

       In August 2010, TCAC was awarded funds from CNCS to serve Tennessee’s growing number of military veterans and their family with the Making Veterans Priority Program. This program was created to offer resources and referrals to give veterans and their families the tools they need to rejoin their community, as well as to provide home modifications to those individuals as well.

       In 2018, TCAC created another branch and began the process of creating a HOME Program Department. The agency applied and was awarded $500,000 for the HOME Rehab Program, funded by Tennessee Housing and Development Agency (THDA), in Cocke County. This program does rehab or rebuilding of homes for qualifying low income individuals. In 2019 TCAC became grant administrators for Hamblen, Union, and Claiborne counties, and in 2020, added Cocke, and Jefferson Counties helping to secure funds to provide these local governments with $500,000 in HOME grants per county. Also in 2020, TCAC was awarded the a Down Payment Assistance grant from THDA, this grant assists qualifying first time homebuyers with purchasing their first home by assisting with down payment, closing costs or principle deduction.

       TCAC’s driving force is being a beacon for agencies and individuals in the community to come to receive services or be provided affordable products they may not have had access to in the past.