Beloved long-time driver for music acts willed East Nashville home to Cumberland Heights
Timothy Cotton
Cumberland Heights announces the creation of the Timothy Cotton Fund for Patient Assistance that was made possible by sale of Tim Cotton’s home on Setliff Place in East Nashville.
Cotton was a former Cumberland Heights patient and long-time driver for many musical acts, including Tim McGraw, Alan Jackson, Lonestar, Kathy Mattea and Conway Twitty.
Cotton passed away in January 2016 and willed his Setliff Place home to Cumberland Heights. The home sold in January 2017. In total, the sale of Cotton’s home generated $285,000, all of which was donated to the fund.
“Tim Cotton was a generous soul who loved caring for others,” said Jay Crosson, chief executive officer at Cumberland Heights. “His incredible donation and the Timothy Cotton Fund for Patient Assistance will help many, many people recover life from drug and alcohol addiction. Tim’s memory will live on at Cumberland Heights in perpetuity.”
The fund is part of Cumberland Heights’ endowment and will provide financial assistance to patients who cannot afford treatment or do not have insurance that covers costs. Cotton was himself a patient on a MusiCares scholarship, so his gift back is especially meaningful.
“This home holds a special place in our heart,” said Mallory Gibson, who purchased this home with her husband. “Our family also lives on Setliff Place and we will now be able to raise our children within walking distance of each other. Tim was deeply committed to his family and his community, and we look forward to honoring that legacy in this beautiful home.”
Cotton was renowned for his ability to make friends. He touched so many people in the Nashville recovery community that they organized aftercare meetings in his hospital room so he did not have to miss meetings. After his death, Cotton’s sister Cathy Reisch received numerous calls from former Cumberland Heights’ patients who had met Tim during treatment and were touched enough to call with condolences.
Cotton was the 1991 Honoree for the Mary Catherine Strobel Award as Volunteer of the Year from Nashville CARES and trained HIV/AIDS volunteer.
Bill Branch of Life Style Real Estate Advisors served as broker donated his commission because proceeds were being donated to Cumberland Heights.
Branch describes the experience as follows: “Tim Cotton loved his family, his home, and his neighborhood. Having worked with Cumberland Heights on several other real estate transactions to support their mission, it was immediately apparent to me that this was a very special situation. After meeting Tim’s sister Cathy Reisch for the first time, I wanted to be a part of helping to make Tim’s dreams and wishes for his home come true. We had two goals from the start; 1) to raise as much money for Tim’s endowment to Cumberland Heights as possible through the sale of his home, and 2) do as much as possible to find new stewards for the property that would love the home and the neighborhood as much as Tim did. On both counts, we succeeded beyond our hopes, and there will be many people benefiting from Tim’s beautiful heart and enormous generosity for years to come.”
Cathy Reisch, said, “The Cotton family is grateful to Bill Branch and Life Style Real Estate Advisors. Bill did more than donate his commission – he put his heart into this task, was very supportive to our entire family and dedicated a lot of time to make this sale happen for all the parties involved.”
