Celebrating Leadership & Legacy: The 2025 Emerald Youth Foundation Legacy Dinner
On Monday, October 20, 2025, at the Knoxville Convention Center, Emerald Youth Foundation will host the 2025 Legacy Dinner – an evening dedicated to honoring those who have given so much to our community, and reminding us all of what service, heart and mentorship can do.
This year’s Legacy Award recipient is none other than Coach Rick Barnes, a name that carries weight in Tennessee, and beyond. As the most decorated head coach in University of Tennessee history, Coach Barnes enters his 11th season at UT and 39th as a head coach overall. Since 2015, his Volunteers have marched into seven consecutive NCAA Tournaments, racked up multiple SEC titles, made four Sweet Sixteens and two Elite Eights and generally hovered among the top-10 nationally.
But his legacy isn’t just wins & trophies. Coach Barnes also serves Emerald Youth as an Emeritus Member of the Board of Trustees, and his connection to Emerald Youth runs deep. In his own words, he sees in the organization a mirror of what he experienced in his childhood – people stepping in at just the right time, with just the right support. That kind of care changes lives. He wants children here in Knoxville to have that same experience.
Events like the Legacy Dinner are about more than honoring one person (though, in this case, the honoree is very well-deserving). They’re about gathering a community, whether donors, supporters, volunteers or advocates, to reflect on achievements, to recommit to goals and to remember that change is made by people who show up.
Emerald Youth Foundation has been doing exactly that: supporting Knoxville’s young people through faith, learning and health outcomes that build character and opportunities that expand horizons. The Legacy Dinner is a chance to see what’s been done, celebrate how far we’ve come, and think about where we still want to go. It’s also a chance for people to come together, break bread, tell some stories (maybe at Coach’s expense — all in good fun, of course) and invest in our city’s next generation of Godly, young adult leaders.
If there’s one thing evenings like this remind us of, it’s that while leadership is often measured in wins, titles and statistics, its truest measure is in lives touched. Coach Barnes embodies that. Emerald Youth Foundation focuses on that. And as a community, when we gather to acknowledge that legacy, not just for one person, but for all the people behind the scenes who care deeply, it reminds us we are capable of so much more together.
Here’s to a wonderful evening on October 20 full of gratitude, inspiration and community. We hope to see you there.