The Peer Tree
Use this as a private-pay pathway when grant-funded help is not the fit. Confirm the service scope, travel expectations, rate, and scheduling before making plans.
A Hoarding Alliance local resource guide
You do not have to solve everything at once. Start with the part that matters most today: immediate safety, a first conversation, a health or benefits question, or one small practical step.
Start here - Fight the Blight
These pathways are designed to help you begin without shame or pressure. Ask what a service actually covers before sharing sensitive details or moving items.
Ask what a first conversation would cover or how a virtual group works. You can ask without sending photos or arranging a home visit.
Role: nonprofit front door for hoarding support and virtual groups; geography: ask about joining online from Shelbyville or elsewhere in Bedford County; cost/eligibility: confirm registration, group fit, and any fees; funded local home services are not assumed; emergency limit: not therapy or emergency response.
If there is immediate danger, smoke or fire, a serious injury, or a medical emergency, call 911. For urgent emotional distress or suicidal thoughts, call or text 988. These emergency pathways are separate from routine service navigation.
First conversations
You do not need to know the perfect service name before reaching out. These organizations can help you understand the landscape and identify a next step.
Use this as a private-pay pathway when grant-funded help is not the fit. Confirm the service scope, travel expectations, rate, and scheduling before making plans.
Use Unburied for peer connection, reflection, practical tools, and support between appointments or conversations. It is not therapy or an emergency service.
Call 211 or use the Tennessee 211 information page to ask for current local referrals. Tell the navigator what kind of help is needed and ask about eligibility, hours, and waitlists.
Safety and stability
These pathways serve different situations. Read the labels carefully before calling, especially when a response may involve crisis care, protective services, shelter, housing rules, legal advocacy, or emergency dispatch.
Call 911 when there is immediate danger, smoke or fire, a medical emergency, or an urgent threat to someone's safety.
Use 988 for urgent emotional distress or suicidal thoughts. If someone is in immediate physical danger, call 911 instead.
Review Tennessee's current crisis-continuum information when you need help understanding behavioral-health crisis pathways. Confirm the current local option before relying on it.
Use the city's current police page for department contacts and jurisdiction questions. For immediate danger, call 911.
The county page lists the Sheriff's Office and current nonemergency information. Confirm which agency handles a concern before sharing private details.
Use this official county page to identify the appropriate emergency-services department. The county directs residents to dial 911 in an emergency.
Use the county Emergency Management Agency page for preparedness and disaster-coordination information. It is not a substitute for 911.
Use the city's fire page for current department information and fire-safety questions. Call 911 for smoke or fire.
Vanderbilt lists Bedford Hospital at 2835 US-231 in Shelbyville. Confirm current emergency, outpatient, and financial-assistance details directly.
Vanderbilt lists an Integrated Urgent Care location in Shelbyville. Confirm current hours and whether the concern should go to the emergency department instead.
Use this public guidance to think about blocked exits, ignition sources, smoke alarms, and a safety conversation. It does not inspect a home or clear a property.
Use the state department's current information to identify behavioral-health pathways, then confirm local eligibility, wait time, and service scope.
People and practical help
These listings connect the local community with housing, food, behavioral health, benefits, transit, survivor advocacy, disability support, peer support, and practical resources. Ask about current availability, cost, scope, consent, and safety before relying on them.
Start with the city's current website for departments, resident services, public notices, utilities, and local contacts.
Use the county website to route questions to building codes, solid waste, emergency management, veterans services, and other departments.
Use the city Building and Codes page for permits, code complaints, and property-safety questions. Confirm whether the address is inside city limits before relying on it.
Use this county page for unincorporated-area code and permit questions. City addresses may follow a different process; confirm jurisdiction first.
Use the city Public Works page for current municipal service questions. Ask specifically what service, collection, or cart issue applies to the address.
Use the county Solid Waste page to ask about current disposal and convenience-center rules. It does not establish that a whole-home cleanup or every item can be accepted.
The county links a community resource guide. Because the linked document is dated, verify every phone number, eligibility rule, and provider before sharing personal information.
The library can be a low-pressure place to access information, computers, and programs. Confirm current hours, card requirements, and program availability.
Use the Shelbyville clinic page to ask about behavioral health, primary care, pharmacy, or nutrition support. Confirm current coverage, intake, and appointment availability.
Use the Shelbyville location page to ask whether the service fits the person's needs. Confirm current appointment availability, coverage, and crisis limits.
Use the hospital page to route health questions, outpatient needs, or financial-assistance questions. Confirm the right department before sharing sensitive information.
UT Extension's Bedford County page is a local education and information source. Ask whether a current program fits the question rather than assuming it provides hoarding cleanup or clinical care.
The county Veterans Service Office helps eligible veterans and dependents navigate benefits and related systems. Confirm eligibility and current contact details.
Use the state Human Services site to review benefits and assistance pathways, then confirm current eligibility, documents, and local processing.
Use THDA's current housing information as a starting point, then ask which local program or housing provider actually serves the household.
Use the city Animal Control page for animal-safety questions or concerns inside city limits. Confirm current intake and enforcement procedures.
Use the state workforce page to find current American Job Center options and ask about transportation, training, employment, or benefits-navigation supports.
A note from the Alliance
This guide is anchored in Shelbyville, Tennessee, and includes city, county, state, nonprofit, national, and independent pathways. A listing here does not mean Fight the Blight endorses every provider or can guarantee availability. The Hoarding Alliance is not a city or county agency, therapy practice, emergency service, or cleanup company. We will keep reviewing this page, but please confirm details directly before relying on them.
Need help choosing a path? Contact Fight the Blight