Our History

Charity Circle of Murfreesboro, a 501 (c) 3 organization, was started in 1910 by 26 women who wished to help the poor with basic needs and services. On Thanksgiving Day, 1912, a Mission Church was built with $400 cash, donated lumber and labor. Charity Circle members were tasked with supplying education, food, sewing lessons, clothing, & coal for needy Mission residents, which became the group’s 1st ongoing agency.

In 1915, there was a recognized need for additional community support, and the Caroling Parties were begun. Members and their families would go door-to-door in December, singing Christmas carols and collecting donations. World War II brought the need for reorganization, and a program of child care and summer recreation was seen as a pressing community need. Charity Circle members responded by creating a program which became the base for the present day City and County Parks and Recreation structure.