A New Standard for Respite Care
The Village at Glencliff’s mission is to provide a healing community for medically vulnerable, unhoused Nashvillians to safely recover, stabilize their lives, and imagine their futures.
The Village at Glencliff is a nonprofit medical respite program created to provide people experiencing homelessness with a dignified and hospitable place for recovery after hospitalization. Our respite/bridge housing community of 12 tiny homes serves the most vulnerable in an effort to raise the equity of healthcare in Nashville. We support each individual in meeting their basic needs so that they are empowered to focus on healing and finding permanent, supportive housing.
We are a startup nonprofit many years in the making, finally opening our campus to serve clients in the fall of 2021. Our current capacity is limited, but we are increasingly filling a profound need in Nashville’s Continuum of Care (CoC) and have high aspirations for growth. We are the only medical respite that operates as we do in the United States, incorporating bridge housing and support services until our residents find their next home.
The story of The Village at Glencliff began over ten years ago when four individuals came together in the wake of the devastating 2010 Nashville flood to found Open Table Nashville to advocate for housing for people experiencing homelessness who had been displaced by flooding. One of these individuals, Rev. Ingrid McIntyre, felt called to create a new space for healing after hospitalization for the people she encountered every day trying to survive on Nashville’s streets, in alleyways, among underpasses, and in parks. This was the genesis of The Village at Glencliff. In offering a portion of their church land for this project, Rev. McIntyre’s congregation at Glencliff United Methodist Church facilitated the creation of this unique model of respite care.
OUR TEAM
Julia Sutherland - Executive Director
Julia Sutherland is a native Nashvillian who returned home after completing her degree in English and American Studies at the University of Sussex. She was introduced to advocacy with people experiencing homelessness by her godmother during college and later by Tom Wills at Downtown Presbyterian Church. After serving for 17 years as a senior marketer in the real estate industry in Nashville and Chicago, Julia shifted gears to development and affordable housing, having witnessed the adverse effects of a booming economy and development on our neighborhoods. She interned at Affordable Housing Resources and started working with The Mainland Companies as a consultant on multifamily projects, gaining valuable insight into housing development. Julia met Rev. Ingrid McIntyre, founder of Village at Glencliff, and her heart for serving this community led to her service on the Village at Glencliff board. In 2022, she became executive director. Julia recently completed her Masters in Sustainable Development with a focus on sustainable construction and health equity. She is applying her varied knowledge to the medical respite model at The Village at Glencliff to foster replicable and sustainable practices that impact our community’s resilience and improve health and housing equity.
Emily Eidson - Director of Operations
Emily Eidson was our Housing and Care Coordinator from April 2022 to November 2023, and she is now serving as our Director of Operations. She has a BA in Religion and an MA is Youth Ministry and hopes to someday continue her education in the field of social work. In addition to her education, Emily has a professional background in the local church, and through her experiences, she found a passion for serving our neighbors experiencing homelessness and being a part of their journey to housing. As Director of Operations, Emily works to create and improve processes at TVG to better serve our residents and expand our reach in the community to serve more of our neighbors experiencing homelessness.
Jesse Call – Resident Case Manager
Jesse Call serves as the Resident Case Manager. He has worked with people experiencing homelessness in Nashville at a variety of organizations including The Contributor, Park Center, Room In the Inn, Street Works, The Salvation Army, and as a volunteer winter outreach canvasser with Open Table Nashville. His work with people experiencing homelessness began early in his life as the son of the pastor and an after-school volunteer at soup kitchens and food pantries. He carries lived experience with facing homelessness, living in public housing, surviving domestic violence, and embracing mental health challenges. Jesse has a law degree in a drawer somewhere that he obtained from Northern Kentucky University's Salmon P. Chase College of Law and holds a Bachelor of Arts in History and Political Science from Concord University. Jesse loves traveling to local small towns on country roads, going to concerts, and playing with animals.
Heather Heffner– Program Coordinator
Heather Heffner is originally from Philadelphia, PA, and moved to Nashville permanently in 2018. Heather has a Bachelor’s degree in Interdisciplinary Studies, with emphases in Nonprofit and Philanthropic Studies, Hunger Studies, Anthropology, and International Studies. During her time in Nashville, she began her journey in the nonprofit world with an experience in a variety of settings. With a strong focus on hunger relief, disaster relief, and serving in-crisis populations, Heather has always had a passion for helping neighbors in need. As the Program Coordinator, Heather is working to expand programming for residents and create opportunities for volunteers, as well as continue helping our neighbors in need.
Kentiana McClain – Licensed Professional Counselor
Originally from Hopkinsville, KY, Kentiana recently relocated to Tennessee, having earned her master’s degree in social work from the University of Kentucky, along with certifications in clinical social work and substance use disorder.
With 7 years of experience in the mental health field, her passion for this work runs deep. She is driven by a desire to understand and support others, feeling most fulfilled when helping individuals navigate their mental health journeys. Her hope is to always encourage, empower, and wholesomely support the individuals she is privileged to work with as a clinician.
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