President of The STAR Center

Story by Lyda Kay Ferree, The Southern Lifestyles Lady. Photography by Kristina Only of Only Photography.

Jennifer Graves is a native of Goodlettsville, Tennessee. She married her husband, Jimmy, in 1989, and they have two adult children—Joshua and Elizabeth. Jennifer spent the first portion of her career at Briarcrest Christian School in Memphis where she was asked to develop a program for middle school students with learning disabilities, and soon thereafter high school students. Jennifer served in various roles such as director of the program, middle school counselor, and high school counselor. In 2015, Jennifer answered the call to move to Jackson, TN to start Union University’s EDGE program, an inclusive post-secondary program for young adults with intellectual disabilities. She served at Union until moving to the STAR Center Inc. in June 2022.

It is difficult to know a person without knowing their why. Why does a person do what they do? My why started as a young child with a grandmother who had polio when there wasn’t a lot that they could do for it. Anna Lou Lamberth walked on crutches from the time she was 6 years old until she went into a nursing home in her 80s. My childhood was spent playing on the farm and getting into all kinds of mischief. My grandmother taught me early on that a disability was only as limiting as a person’s attitude. She raised eight children. She taught school. She raised a garden. The first store-bought clothes any of them had was for their high school graduation. She was amazing. What I learned as a child is that you don’t make excuses. You do the very best you can with what you have, and then you keep going. My grandmother was truly the first person I knew that defined #crushtheno.

My grandmother led me to volunteer at my high school in the special education department. Mr. Frank Swinea was the teacher who taught me that forward progress was progress. You work with people to help them become the best that they can be. He encouraged me to take courses in special education at Union University. Dr. Singleton at Union taught me the pedagogy that would help me become a professional educator for young people with specific disabilities.

Every position I have held in the past has prepared me for the present. I am excited to be at The STAR Center. The STAR Center has a 34-year history of helping people with disabilities reach their potential. I am honored to be a part of the legacy that Margaret and Chuck Doumitt began in 1988.

VIP: Share a short history of The STAR Center.

JENNIFER GRAVES: The STAR Center was founded in 1988 to provide services to people with disabilities, and we serve people of all ages and all means. Our mission is to help any person with any disability to realize their potential. This started with Charles (Chuck) and Margaret Doumitt, who had two children both of whom had vision disabilities, and they were searching for some way to help them. There was nothing in Jackson and nothing in the entire South to help them. They went as far as California before they found any services that would help their two children. But the Doumitts did not want to live in California, so they began The STAR Center in Jackson, TN.

When you think of all the people that The STAR Center has helped because of a Mom and Dad’s desire to help their children it’s visionary, it’s miraculous, it’s incredible, and it’s awesome.

The STAR Center started in the basement of West Jackson’s school. I graduated from Union University in 1989, and I remember hearing in my special ed classes about the start of The STAR Center and how it would be revolutionary for adults and children with disabilities, and it has been.

Last year The STAR Center served over 4,000 individuals. It started out helping children in the area of vision services, but now it also serves all ages in the areas of employment, music therapy, assistive technology, and speech therapy. We even have home care clients who long to be independent and stay in their homes.

Employment services are a part of who we are. Last year we placed 82 individuals in jobs. Now, because of the founders’ work, we are in all 95 counties of the state of Tennessee for assistive technology. All of our services are available in Madison County and the 21 counties in the West Tennessee region, but assistive technology is available in all 95 counties of Tennessee.

VIP: How does the position you held at Union University assist you in your present position at The STAR Center?

JG: I was the director of Union’s EDGE program, which is an inclusive post-secondary program for college-age students with intellectual disabilities. Most assuredly there is a carryover. At the EDGE program, I learned a great deal about intellectual and developmental disabilities. As I come to this position at The STAR Center I bring a different position because I am an educator. I have served elementary, middle, high school, and college students. The things that I have done in my past all lead to where I am now.

VIP: What appeals to you about being President of The STAR Center?

JG: The impact on people. Sometimes you are only starting a process, but you are changing lives every single day. If you think about a person with a disability who gets a job, that’s life-changing. Or you put a device in the hand of a person who prior to getting that assisted technology cannot function well, it’s life-changing. We’re changing lives every day at The STAR Center!

“The mission of The STAR Center is to help any person with any disability to realize their potential.”

— Jennifer Graves, President of The STAR Center

VIP: Are there other STAR Centers or comparable facilities in other cities in Tennessee or the Mid-South? If so, where are they located?

JG: There are other organizations across the state that serve individuals with disabilities, but what makes us different is the variety of services offered through one center. For example, they may only offer vision or employment services. And most recently, our assistive technology services expanded state-wide.

VIP: What sets The STAR Center apart from other non-profit organizations?

JG: One in four adults and one in six children in the US have a disability. Chances are everyone knows at least one person who has a disability. Our purpose is to serve any person of any age with any disability, whether that be an invisible disability like ADHD or a person whose disability is more evident to the eye like Down syndrome. We strive to impact not on the individual’s life, but also make an impact on the communities in which they grow and live.

VIP: Talk about the annual fundraisers and upcoming fundraisers for The STAR Center.

JG: Dancing with the STARs is our major fundraiser, which this year will take place on Saturday, October 29 at the Fairgrounds. Tables are now available to purchase at dwtsjackson.org. STAR hosts a golf tournament each year, and the Shadrack Christmas Wonderland Event is another big event for our center as it receives a percentage of the proceeds of this holiday lights show held at The Ballpark in Jackson.

One of the goals going forward is to increase our donor base not just for the events but monthly donors, like our TRISTAR LEGENDS program. Historically our funding has come from two grants and over the last two years, our state funding has changed. The challenge of The STAR Center is to increase our donations and the base of people who support us throughout the state.

The STAR Center is open 5 days a week from 8 a.m.–5 p.m. The STAR Center accepts clients through private pay or referrals through a medical professional, a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor, or Veterans Administration.

VIP: What are the top priorities of The STAR Center for 2022?

JG: We would like to continue helping more people, so we want to increase our donor base because without their donations we don’t have the ability to assist people. Our goal is to make our mission and our name known throughout all 95 counties of Tennessee.

VIP: Looking ahead, what would you like to see happen at The STAR Center in the next five years?

JG: I am about one month in my position, so it’s hard to think about the next five years. But I want to continue growing our services throughout the state, educate as many people as I can on the services that we offer, and at the top of my list is to help businesses understand how they can hire a person with a disability and explain what great employees they are!