Glennville will once again be making national news, since the Today Show Producer Aaron Brownlee and Associate Producer Channing Hans, visited Glennville on Monday, March 7, 2022, to film and interview Linda Durrence at her ministry of Blossom. Blossom Boutique, at 902 N. Veterans Blvd., is owned by Linda and Mark Durrence; it is dedicated to serving foster, adopted, and any less fortunate children from anywhere with free items of clothing, shoes, and toys.
The adjacent Blossom Indoor Thrift Shop is open to the public, however, and has reasonable prices on clothing, shoes, toys, and household items that are for sale. The revenue from the thrift shop helps to support Blossom Boutique. The Blossom Boutique does not sell to the public, since it is dedicated to providing for foster children or for those who are needy. Blossom Boutique has clothing from newborn up to age 18 years of age for both males and females.
Leslie Walker, Linda Durrence's sister, manages both shops. Leslie is a former employee of the Dept. of Family and Children Services (DFCS), so she knows firsthand that most of the foster children leave their biological homes with almost nothing, sometimes just the clothes on their backs.
Brownlee and Hans, who reside in New York City, arrived in Glennville at 9 a.m. Monday morning to begin shooting interviews with Linda Durrence and her adopted daughters, Juanita, Princessa, and Chelsie. Sara Durrence Santana and Madison Durrence are Linda and Mark's two biological daughters.
Sara has a hair salon next to Blossom, and Theresa Rhiner, another sister to Linda and Leslie, has opened an upholstery shop next to Blossom in the same complex. Funds from the upholstery shop will further support Blossom Boutique for the foster children.
Channing Hans of the Today Show commented that the story on Blossom went viral so quickly, with the network hearing about it first from a story in the New York Post as well as from colleagues.
"We knew that we just had to come to Glennville for the taping, and it should air sometime near the end of March," she said, with Linda to be notified of the exact date.
Overall, in Tattnall County, 13 foster children currently reside with foster families in the county. Seven couples currently serve as foster families in Tattnall.
Blossom is also now accepting used (or new) Bibles, even those with names written in them or underlining. Children's books are also accepted.
Other items needed for the clothing are clothes hangers, children's and adult sizes.
Hours for Blossom Boutique are Monday-Friday from 9 a.m.-4 p.m., and Blossom Indoor Thrift Shop are Wednesday-Friday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., and Saturday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Phone number is 912-654-3318, and email is blossomsoutheast@yahoo.com. You can also visit "Blossom" on Facebook.
"We appreciate the donations that we have received and those who have shopped our thrift store to help fund Blossom Boutique," she said.
