Kingsport

Kingsport sits in the northeast corner of Tennessee, a former industrial town built around Eastman Chemical that still carries a working-class, close-knit feel even as manufacturing jobs have thinned out. The average household income here runs around $58,000 a year, but that number hides real gaps—plenty of people in this city are barely scraping by or have nowhere stable to sleep at night. The most recent regional point-in-time count for the Kingsport-Bristol area identified 187 individuals experiencing homelessness in 2023, and outreach workers will tell you the real number moves with the seasons and the economy. If you're here, Kingsport Office on Youth and Family and the Salvation Army of Kingsport both run programs that can connect you to shelter, food, and case management, and Kingsport United Methodist has historically opened its doors for meals and cold-weather relief. People in this town do care, even when the system feels slow or thin. You are not invisible here, and there are hands out—reach for one when you can.