Who is David Thomforde?

 I  have had connections with McMinn County since 1984 when I joined the Athens Community Theater while living in Knoxville.  Marrying Kathryn Hunter, who worked out of Etowah, solidified my   connections here. We bought a house here in 1997.  Since then we have lived in this county on and off, staying with Kathryn’s parents in  California and working overseas in between. While living here, I worked as an occupational therapist at Life Care Athens, the former Woods Hospital and Guardian Home Health. Kathryn and  I lived and  worked in 7 different countries in Africa, Asia and South America where  I was caring for people with disabilities but we always come back to our home base in McMinn County.  

 Currently I am retired and am dedicating my life to volunteering to help the people of this district.  I repair homes of needy people at no cost with Helping Hands Ministry, build affordable housing with Habitat for Humanity of McMinn County, facilitate in the provision of assistance following house fires with Red Cross, support public education with McMinn Neighbors, help distribute free food at Grace House food pantry, and lobby for legislation addressing climate change with Citizens Climate Lobby.  I spent 2 weeks in Louisiana helping those affected by hurricanes with Red Cross and I mentor Occupational Therapists in developing countries. 

 Kathryn began her career working for the USDA Forest Service on the Cherokee National Forest. She retired after spending more than 20 years as an international consultant in natural resource management. 

I come from a family of public servants; my father was mayor of Pleasant Hill near Crossville and my grandfather founded a hospital in China which is still operating today. I am a Quaker; the importance of helping those in need is an essential part of Quaker beliefs.

 My volunteer and work experiences have given me a deep understanding of the challenges facing McMinn County residents and the urgent need to address some of these problems. I look forward during this campaign to meeting residents of the portion of Monroe county in this district and learning more about issues they face.  

Photo by Jan Burleson