When Burt Rosen retired as CEO of Knox Area Rescue Ministries (KARM), he and wife Carolyn Rosen moved fulltime into a quest that had started over 20 years earlier. That’s when their oldest child, Matthew, dropped out of college and disappeared.

They started the nonprofit Hold on to Hope to encourage families with missing loved ones. Certainly, Burt and Carolyn could speak from the heart. And they kept searching for Matthew.

This week, Burt posted on social media: “Matthew has been missing just over 24 years. The Hope we have been holding on to all these years was realized when, in miraculous fashion, we found him in Fairbanks, Alaska.

Sure enough, there are family pictures from Fairbanks. You can read Burt’s story here.

Knoxville Now and Then

Ronnie Collins, retired trucker, loves to take photos. Jennifer Montgomery, downtown broker for Wallace Real Estate, loves to give historic tours. For a look at Jennifer’s latest Local Lore tour, photographed by Ronnie, go here.

Jennifer Montgomery talks local lore

Real Good Kitchen = Real good concept

Bailey Foster

Real Good Kitchen received a 100 after a recent visit from the Knox County Health Department inspector. Founder Bailey Foster was ecstatic. “We follow strict food safety and sanitation protocols and are super proud of our 2,500-square-foot licensed commercial kitchen,” she posted.

A Knoxville native, Bailey grew up in the kitchen with her mother and grandmother. She spent more than 20 years away in New York and San Francisco, where she worked in book publishing, retail grocery, consulting and software development, while eating all the food and exploring food cultures from around the world.

When she returned to Knoxville in 2013, she found a thriving downtown scene and a growing local food and beverage culture. Drawing on the work of other shared kitchens, she conceived of Real Good Kitchen as a facility and a community that would make it possible for more people to share their food stories, that would foster greater equity and opportunity in the local food economy and that would help us all eat well. Learn more here.

Bailey chairs the Knoxville-Knox County Food Policy Council and is on the board of the East Knoxville Business and Professional Association. She serves on the Mayor’s Maker Council and was a member of the Leadership Knoxville class of 2024. The shared commercial kitchen is located at 2004 Magnolia Ave. It is open for public tours one Saturday each month at 10 a.m. Watch social media for details. Info: 865-910-0298.

Around town

Joan Ashe, Bryan Goldburg and former Mayor Victor Ashe get ready for lunch at the Bistro at the Bijou. (Photo by Cynthia Moxley, whose husband, Alan Carmichael, is eating lunch at a window table.

 

Sarah Miller at Sun West Knox

Sun West Knox is open for business at 4817 Kingston Pike in Bearden. Sarah Miller is the owner/operator. Her biggest fan is husband Dave Miller, who posted: “To say I’m incredibly proud of Sarah is an understatement. She has worked so hard over this past year and overcome obstacles that would have caused most to quit. She made her vision a reality and I admire her immensely for it.”

Attending the ribbon-cutting event were Commissioner Larsen Jay, state Sen. Becky Massey and representatives of the Knoxville Chamber.

Learn what’s offered at the spa and tanning salon at www.sunwestknox.com/. Info: 865-309-5583 or hello@sunwestknox.com

Notes & Quotes

Holleroo, the street festival that celebrates everything Happy Holler, will be 11 a.m. until 10 p.m. Saturday, May 17, 2025, on North Central Street and Anderson Avenue in Happy Holler. Bands include the classic country of New Market Trainwrecks, the straight forward rock and roll of Kevin Abernathy (with a full band), the return of King Super and the Excellents and a headlining set from Nashville indie rockers The Weeks. The soap box derby will start at noon.

Last-minute registration is available for anyone wanting to participate in the event. Go to holleroo.co for more information.

Three Knox County offices have relocated.

The Halls Farmers Market has opened at Beaver Dam Baptist Church, 4328 E. Emory Road. It’s open every Saturday from 9 a.m. until noon. It is sponsored by the Halls Crossroads Women’s League. Info here.