The city of Whitwell in Marion County is about 25 miles northwest of Chattanooga - a little more than a half- hour drive away.
At Whitwell Middle School, a state-of-the-art piano lab for the students opened earlier this year - thanks to donations from the Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga, the Lyndhurst Foundation and the Songbirds Foundation.
Roger Payne is the school’s music director.
Over the summer, I spoke with him; Caroline von Kessler, vice president of philanthropy at the Community Foundation; and donor Dr. Ruth Liu.
