Goodwill Industries of the Greater Chattanooga Area News

By Lora B December 2, 2025
Welcome Aleetra Rice, Chief Financial Officer.
By Lora B November 12, 2025
Goodwill Celebrates Grand Opening of New Fort Oglethorpe Store and Donation Center
By Lora B November 12, 2025
Get ready to clear out those old gadgets, and more! This America Recycles Day, Goodwill is making it easy for you to recycle responsibly while giving back to the community. Goodwill is encouraging residents to join the movement by recycling electronics and donating other household items. Thanks to partnerships with EPB and Dell, Goodwill is helping reduce e-waste by safely repurposing materials from donated devices. What can you bring? Electronics: Drop off your old computers, tablets, and other devices at any Goodwill Donation XPress Center. Shoes and Clothing: Clean out your closets and give your gently used apparel a second life. Furniture and Household Items: Declutter your home and help someone shop sustainably. For peace of mind, Goodwill provides guidance on securely clearing personal data from your devices before donating. Visit www.goodwillchatt.org/donate-electronics for details. This America Recycles Day, make a difference. Recycle, donate, and support your community with Goodwill! Click here to find a Goodwill Donation XPress Center near you! Donations of electronics and other items can be made any day of the year! Click Here to View the Interview on WTVC News Channel 9's This 'N That Show
By Lora B November 7, 2025
Shoppers line up for Goodwill's grand opening With the rising cost of items and inflation hitting 3% in September, more shoppers are turning towards thrifting. Dozens were lined up for Goodwill's grand opening in Fort Oglethorpe on Thursday. This is the second Goodwill location in Fort Oglethorpe. It's not just the unique pieces or vintage finds, the low prices are also drawing more people in. "It was like a flashback of Black Friday, 2010 you know, there was the line, the excitement in the kind of the mass grabs, and then you go through your little cart," said Lee Tchison, local shopper. During times where people are looking for ways to cut costs, thrift stores provide that outlets. From gently used clothes, shoes, decor and even appliances, customers take something old and make it new. "During this day and time, as you said, you know to save money, that's everything now. So, it always helps. You know, if you can find a bargain here and there," said Susan Freeman, shopper. Thrift stores are all across the Greater Chattanooga Area. You can clean your closet or garage and donate gently used items. Just contact your nearest thrift store to see what items they are in need of. "I also like donating my own stuff, like, because even if there's stuff that you don't like anymore, there's definitely stuff that you could give away, that someone else will probably want, and they could have use of it. So I think it's like recycling," said Lily Mister, Shopper. The new Goodwill in Fort Oglethorpe is still hiring. If you're interested, you can find opportunities here. Source
By Lora B November 7, 2025
New Goodwill Store Opens FORT OGLETHORPE, GA. (WDEF) – Goodwill Industries of the Greater Chattanooga Area celebrated the opening of a new store and donation center in Fort Oglethorpe on Thursday morning.  The event began with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 8:30 a.m., followed by the store officially opening its doors at 9. The new location is at 1873 Battlefield Parkway in the Battlefield Centre shopping center, next to Planet Fitness. The facility features approximately 15,660 square feet of retail space, with the entire building totaling around 37,224 square feet. The site includes both a Goodwill retail store and a Donation Xpress Center, offering customers a single stop to donate gently used items and shop. Goodwill says the original Fort Oglethorpe store and donation center near Big Lots on Battlefield Parkway will remain open. Visitors who attended the opening this morning were able to take part in door prizes and giveaways as part of the celebration. Source
By Lora B November 7, 2025
By Lora B November 4, 2025
Goodwill Grand Opening in Fort Oglethorpe The celebration will kick off with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, Nov. 6, followed by the official store opening at 9 a.m. Join us for prizes and giveaways! Goodwill Industries of the Greater Chattanooga Area will celebrate the grand opening of its newest store and donation center in Fort Oglethorpe. The celebration will kick off with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, Nov. 6, followed by the official store opening at 9 a.m. The new location, at 1873 Battlefield Parkway in the Battlefield Centre shopping center next to Planet Fitness, will include a Goodwill store and a Donation Xpress Center. The existing Goodwill store and donation center located at 516 Battlefield Parkway, near Big Lots in Fort Oglethorpe, will also remain open. After the opening of the second Fort Oglethorpe store, the local nonprofit will operate 16 stores and three Goodwill Opportunity Centers in the region. Their three Goodwill Opportunity Centers, two in Chattanooga and one in Dalton, provide career search and employment-readiness assistance at no charge to the community. The local non-profit invites the public to join them for the grand opening event, which will include a ribbon-cutting, an appearance by Goodwill’s Smiling G mascot and giveaways and door prizes throughout the day, as supplies last. T he store’s hours are Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Goodwill accepts donations during regular store hours. “We’re proud to expand our presence in Fort Oglethorpe and deepen our commitment to the community,” said Gena Weldon, President and CEO of Goodwill Industries of the Greater Chattanooga Area. “Those who shop and donate join us in our mission to help people overcome barriers to employment, divert millions of pounds of items from local landfills, equip people with training to prepare for the future of work and make a real impact in Southeast Tennessee and Northwest Georgia.” Source
By Lora B October 21, 2025
Goodwill Hosting Hiring Event in East Brainerd – October 22 Goodwill will host a hiring event at the Goodwill Opportunity Center in East Brainerd on Wednesday, October 22, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The Goodwill Opportunity Center is located at 7601 East Brainerd Road, Suite 121 , next to the Goodwill store and Donation Xpress location. The local hiring event in Chattanooga, TN , is in partnership with Teleperformance , which is recruiting in the state of Tennessee for remote health care customer service representatives . The roles offer a rate of pay of $14.75 per hour and a bilingual pay rate of $16.25 per hour for those who are fluent in both English and Spanish.
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Contact Information

Marketing and Communications

Office: (423) 629-2501 ext. 3701

Cell: (423) 488-9357

Email: michellet@goodwillchatt.org

A black and white photo of a goodwill store

Company Overview

Goodwill was founded in 1902 in Boston, MA, by Rev. Edgar J. Helms. The idea was simple, fight poverty not with charity but with trade skills and provide a chance for the poor and unemployed to do productive work.


Inspired by compassion for the poor, sick, and disabled and determined to improve their quality of life, Helms put a burlap bag over his shoulder and asked for unwanted clothing, shoes, and household goods. He employed people in need to restore those collected items and taught them trades and skills as they worked. The income from the resale of those goods paid wages to these people.


With Helms as the driving force, Goodwill Industries spread throughout the United States. On July 5, 1923, Chattanooga Goodwill opened as the first Goodwill in the state of Tennessee and the 25th in the world.