deborah bledsoe

community coordinator

Deborah Bledsoe is a neighborhood leader, artist and advocate who specializes in bringing the voice of the community to life through her work. She’s a connector and a collaborator with a gift for door-knocking and mobilizing. And she’s also an incredible singer and songwriter. 

Deborah is originally from Buffalo, New York but now calls the Glass Street area home — in fact, she left the area for a short time in 2014 but missed the connection she had with the community so much that her family returned. She and her husband David are well known in the Chattanooga gospel scene for their group 2DeepWithin.

“In my singing and in my work, I’m just so happy to go around and spread love and happiness to the community,” she says. “I’m so blessed that I’m able to reach people.”

Her creative and community work have put Deborah at the center of so many Glass House projects, from Glass Street Live and Gospel on Glass, to SWAY and Habitat for Humanity. As a member of the Good Neighbor Network, Deborah helped connect residents with opportunities — and she continues to play this amazing role in the community as a member of GHC’s Advisory Council. 

Deborah formally joined the GHC team in 2020 — a time when people everywhere had to get creative to connect. But to her, even these tough times show us what our community is made of. “I see growth in the neighborhood. People are changing their minds and their attitudes,” she says. “And hopefully we are showing that when you participate in the place you live in, it can be different. We’re cheerleaders but we need to participate for great causes, too.”