Our Happy Customers

Don Shaw

My dad recently relocated from Tennessee to South Carolina, and we selected Linda Dunn of DunnRite Transitions to coordinate the move. He had been in the same house for over twenty-five years and naturally had a lot of stuff to be sorted.

Linda patiently and compassionately helped him go through everything, identify what would fit in his new place and then drew up a floor plan. She then selected an excellent moving company. Since this was not a local move, she also communicated with the South Carolina move coordinator to ensure everything was clear.

On move day, my dad’s belongings arrived around 8:00 a.m., and he was unpacked, furniture arranged as agreed, and pictures on the wall by noon. Amazing. The local move coordinator commented that things went as smoothly as they did because of Linda’s organization and communication.

In summary, Linda turned what could have been a total nightmare into a very smooth process. I could not be more pleased.

Jackie and Gary Lutz

Linda was instrumental in making our move as successful as it turned out to be. She is an extremely hard and fast worker. Because of the fact that moves are so difficult, she was a constant source of encouragement. Not only did she pack, she organized the moving company, the auction company, and all the articles we needed to help make this a successful move. Because of the short amount of time we had, we needed to go to auction rather than an estate sale. Whatever difficulty we faced, she seemed to have an answer or a resource that we could use to solve our issue. She genuinely cared about us to the point that she made a personal call to us after we had settled in our new location to be sure that all had gone right and that we and our belongings had arrived safely. She arranged for everything, even to the placement of the furniture in our new apartment. Linda understands how stressful a move is, and she did everything she could to alleviate as much of the stress as possible. My husband and I would give a 100% recommendation to Linda’s Company, DunnRite Transitions.

Darren Callahan

DunnRite Transitions helped coordinate an elder move with multiple vendors, complex logistics, and a large amount of belongings. This work had to be done quickly and with quality. And, in a world that always seeks the highest value, the costs were reasonable and without surprises. It is with great pleasure that I recommend Linda Dunn and DunnRite Transitions for any move management.

Jane Mook

Linda Dunn was a tremendous help when I downsized from a 5-bedroom to a 2-bedroom condo. She first made a floor plan that determined what to move and what to eliminate. Then she packed many boxes of china, etc., and helped in any way she could. Then she unpacked and put away at the other end. She was always prompt. I couldn’t have done it without her. She’s worth every penny she charges.

Mary Smith

Linda Dunn, owner of Dunnrite Transitions, was helpful from our very first meeting through move-in day and beyond. She offered tips on downsizing, helped in sorting and removing items, arranged for a future estate sale, professionally packed and unpacked my belongings. She was there on loading day and saw it through unloading and unpacking. Linda is professional and you can tell she enjoys helping people. At times I felt overwhelmed during the process, but knowing Linda was coming on any given day relieved my anxiety and stress level. The enormous task of moving was simplified with her help and support. She has many contacts in the industry who are responsive to her needs. Thank you Linda for getting me through the ordeal of moving with ease.

Sarah Kiely

I wanted to thank you so much for all of your help and support in moving my mom into Arbor Terrace. Her apartment looks and feels warm and homey and I couldn’t have done it without you. Hope to see you soon at Arbor Terrace. Thanks again!

Anna Sammons

Here is the review I posted on your Facebook page: “Linda is a miracle worker. She did an amazing job coordinating my ailing mom’s cross country move in record time. She arranged everything in under 2 weeks, helped downsize, packed, and even took the cat to the vet to get sedatives for the flight. She was endlessly kind and supportive during a very difficult time. Also worth noting … her fees were very reasonable. Linda, we cannot thank you enough for everything you’ve done for our family!!”

Please know we are forever grateful for your help and always available as a reference should you need one in the future.

Oh, and personal training is going great! You are an inspiration in so many ways. Thank you for all that you do!

Barbara Brock

I will ALWAYS REMEMBER your prompt & eager response to help me in sorting through Mother’s house. We found many treasures! Thanks again!

Bob and Dorothy Connor

Because of your dedication and hard work our move from Tennessee to Bloomington, IL went without a hitch. The boxes are all unpacked and everything made it okay. We just need to find a place to put it! We appreciated your concern for customer satisfaction.

Adam and Josie Mott

My husband and I (in our mid-and late-seventies) were overwhelmed by selling our house in the middle of nowhere in southeastern TN and looking for a Senior Living Community in the central VA area. I was a little panicked about my husband’s policy of never throwing anything away and his collections of things he loved but never used or wore.

The prospective move was overwhelming to us especially when never expected to have to move again when we moved to the forest in TN. Life happens! We (mostly me) were working toward this move for about 2 years and I had been preparing by getting rid of things, giving things away and trying to get things organized.

I tried to get my husband’s cooperation and help but his resistance was fierce and firm. I was not allowed to take any action with anything that was his or had come to us through his family. I noticed that the old folks’ communities sometimes offered downsizing seminars and went online looking for such a thing nearby. Of course there was nothing being offered at the time but I saw ads for something called a “senior move specialist,” “manager,” or “coordinator,” or “organizer” and some of them had some kind of training and membership in a service organization called NASMM.

Our house was already sold and I sure didn’t want to pay movers to move things never used or even looked at for sometimes 40 years. I felt way too old and physically limited to handle this move at all, I contacted NASMM licensed “Dunnrite Transitions,” Linda Dunn, from somewhere around Knoxville which was the closest city to me (70+) miles.

Her web site worked! Others did not! A site where I left a “contact me” message finally emailed me more than a week later. Other sites just wouldn’t take the info and didn’t work at all.

But I was lucky and Linda Dunn contacted me right away and told me to expect a call and when. She followed through very quickly and came out to talk to me the day she called! It is so far that I really had not expected anyone to agree to come to my location. She did.

We talked; she saw what we had to move and understood the situation. We scheduled a couple of work sessions right away. We needed to get rid of a LOT of stuff, (many trips to the dump and places where we donated things), give a few things away, sell some antiques, sell some ordinary stuff at auction; and move some things to a separate location.

Linda’s very 1st phone call was worth her fee! She told me things I would never have known and had ideas I had never considered. I felt that she could really be of great assistance. The whole move was greatly simplified and I felt assured we could really do it after one meeting. And the woman WORKS hard by side with us or when we couldn’t she worked alone.

Every now and again a review and evaluation of what we had accomplished and where we needed to go took place. She got things organized and we moved swiftly toward the goal. Linda worked closely with my husband in particular to help him part with things.

When she needed to be firm she could do it. She went on a previously planned vacation and went to help someone else move but she was constantly in touch with us and kept every promise she made. She scheduled the mover with our input and worked out the contract with them. She scheduled another NASMM group to help on the other end at our Sunnyside apartment and worked with the marketing and move-in department at Sunnyside.

The move went perfectly thanks to Linda Dunn’s attentiveness to detail, prompt responses and efficient communications. Yes, there were last minute problems. She helped keep it all under control. She even helped us a little to deal with the logistics of moving two cats!

I was really amazed at the whole atmosphere around our move. Linda helped create the feeling of assurance that everything would work out and it did. We sent a lot of items to an auction house (a part of the Moving Company, “Green Valley”) that will be stored and sold after the 1st of the year so the whole thing is not over yet, nor is our new apartment fully hooked up yet but everything is going just fine and I’m sure it will continue that way.

The positives of our move are greatly due to Linda Dunn and Dunnrite Transitions.

Brett Haas, Let’s Move Client Support Specialist

I just wanted to thank you again for all of your hard work with Mr. Smith. Your attention to detail made it much easier for our team to receive him at Riderwood. Our Project Manager said the family was elated with all of the support throughout this move process.

Thanks again and I look forward to working together again soon!

Jannett Bennett (Posted on Angie’s List)

Ms. Dunn met with my mother once a week for about 4 hours each time. They worked together a total of 9 times in May, June and July 2014.

She helped my mom sort and make decisions about her possessions. I had helped my mom with this process several years ago when she moved from Washington state to Tennessee. She had to downsize from 1800 sq. ft. with a garage/shop and storage room to 1400 sq. ft. It was VERY difficult for both of us and strained the relationship. My mother was (and still is) very attached to her things and had accumulated a huge amount of stuff. I knew I did not want to be the one working one-on-one with her on this even bigger downsizing. It would have caused too much stress, frustration and potential hurt feelings for both of us. I would have to nag, she would get mad and almost every decision would be tense and/or tearful depending on who “won.” The basic issue was that mom didn’t want to go to assisted living and didn’t want to get rid of any of her things.

Ms. Dunn was able to be a neutral person who didn’t get caught up in all the emotion. She was always respectful and kind with mom but was also the consistent voice of reality and reason. She listened to mom’s stories about certain items and my mother enjoyed having an interested “ear” while she made these tough choices. Linda had to be firm on many occasions because mom wanted to keep way too much. She had a HUGE collection of fabrics and quilting books and magazines; way more than she could ever use, but she insisted on keeping almost all of it. It was a huge challenge to get her to agree to letting much of it be included in her upcoming estate sale. Linda kept reinforcing the idea that the fabric could still become a beautiful quilt that someone else would enjoy and perhaps hand down to her family. She used this same tactic with many of mom’s huge collection of knick knacks and numerous bins of holiday decorations. She would tell mom that she had enjoyed (the item) for many years now and would always have the memories but it was time to let it go or pass it on for someone else’s enjoyment. She was very patient and I appreciated that. (I was often at the house doing other things while Linda and my mom were working together so I overheard the conversation.)

Linda also helped on moving day getting mom settled into her new home. She is a hard worker and not afraid to lift heavy boxes and move furniture. She also did packing and even cleaned the refrigerator which I thought above and beyond the call of duty.

As an example of her kind nature, she made a beautiful notebook for mom of quilts taken from the pages of numerous magazines that mom had put post-it tabs on. Mom said she had to have all the magazines because of the quilts she marked. Linda took the stack home and came back the next week with the notebook nicely arranged and each page in a plastic sleeve. As if that wasn’t enough, she made an arrangement of some of mom’s dried flowers that she pressed into the front clear plastic pocket of the notebook. It was a lovely, thoughtful gesture that she did on her own time.

Let me finish by saying I highly recommend Linda Dunn and DunnRite Transitions for your senior moving needs! She is well informed of senior services in the greater Knoxville and Loudon county area and has lots of good ideas – like the quilt notebook – to share. She helped make this big transition in my mother’s life much easier and more pleasant for both of us.

Description of work:

I located Linda Dunn – DunnRite Transitions – through a referral. I needed someone qualified and experienced to assist my 85 year old mother with downsizing from her 1400 square foot home to a 600 square foot assisted living apartment. Ms. Dunn responded quickly to my inquiry and met with myself and my mom at mom’s home a few days later. She explained her role in the “right sizing” process and asked questions of mom and myself to get to know our concerns and goals for this significant transition. We discussed how often she and my mom would meet (we decided on weekly), she asked for a floor plan of the new apartment so she could accurately place furniture and gauge how much “stuff ” the new space could accommodate and informed us what she charges for her services.

I was immediately impressed with Linda’s professionalism, communication skills and sensitivity to my mother’s concerns.

Actual testimonial on Angie’s List.

Karen Rodgers

After working on a packing job, for another company, we received the following comments and “scores” on their client survey:
Customer
Karen R.

In past moves, have you had professional help with organizing and putting items away?
Yes
No
How much time do you think our Quick Start Unpack service saved you with getting settled in?
One Day
Three Days
One Week
Other: At least 1 month
On a scale of 1-10, with 1 being “Extremely Dissatisfied” and 10 being “Extremely Satisfied,” how would you rate the service consultants on the following:
Overall professionalism: 10
Knowledge and expertise: 10
Attentiveness to your needs: 10
Comments:
Linda Dunn went above and beyond. She was awesome.
Would you recommend our services to others?
Yes
No
How would you rate your overall experience with us?
Poor
Fair
Good
Excellent

(Actual survey sheet on file.)

Karen Sullenberger

I am pretty well settled, but still going thru things and reorganizing to do. I simply could not have done this big move without your help on that end and the company on this end! Thank you so much for all you did…it was a life saver for me! And you can put that in print.

Kathy Baker

After my husband’s death, I needed to sell my home, downsize and move. I was overwhelmed and contacted Linda Dunn to assist me. Linda packed my furnishings, helped me to get rid of everything I was not moving, assisted me in the actual move and helped me unpack in my new home.

I could not have accomplished all this without her services. Linda is truly a professional, well-organized transition specialist, and I highly recommend her to anyone facing the challenge of moving.

Lawrence and Bente Spoon

I can now take a moment and thank you for your services. As I stated per phone a short few days ago, your timely providing of a capable international shipper and an available home estate sale representative allowed Bente and I to meet a closing date of about 30 days from receiving the offer. Bente and I made that closing date and continued our movement plans, though our buyer was hospitalized and the funding of the close delayed until tomorrow. We simply would not have been able to accomplish this move within this timeframe without your early assistance.

The association that you are a recognized member of was not an association that I was aware of but as we can attest, needs to be advertised as it was an active part to our success. Please accept our thanks and our recommendations going forward to others who need assistance with their transitions. You truly earn your recognition.

Lori Ashford

Wanted to let you know my dad is settling in well! The move went extremely smoothly, with everything unpacked by mid-afternoon, including the major paintings hung. His place looks homey and just like a smaller version of his former surroundings! All of the furniture fit like a charm.

Everything fit so well in fact that there was no need to rent the storage locker available in the basement of his building.

So, I’m writing with our heartfelt thanks for your dedication, superb organizational skills and incredible efficiency. You made an overwhelming process doable, and we are still marveling at how quickly his move went. Now he is entirely focused on becoming acquainted with new people and possible activities.

Mary Sarar

Linda Dunn has worked for me helping me downsize, organize, and generally rearrange my belongings. I am so happy with her. She is efficient and fast, and has had an intrinsic understanding of my value of the belongings we are dealing with. Her compassion for my feelings are greatly appreciated. She has the connections to sell unneeded items and to dispose of unsalable, unusable items. She never stops and never seems to tire. She is worth every penny and is a wonderful new friend.

Lori Resnick

I just want to thank you for the wonderful job you did in preparing my mother for her move from Tennessee to New Jersey. You did such an amazing job, and I don’t know how we could have accomplished this move without you.

You gave my mother support when she needed it. You were very patient with her and didn’t stress her out, even though there were times when that must have been very difficult. She needed to feel in control of the process, and you gave her that feeling, not pushing her to make any decisions that she wasn’t comfortable with.

You accomplished an amazing amount, getting her to give away, donate, and sell many of her belongings, since she was moving from a house to an apartment, and not everything would fit in her new 2-bedroom apartment.

And, you got all her things packed up and ready to go for the movers. You also created a diagram of where all the furniture should go in the new apartment, and all the boxes were well-labeled with their contents, and where they should go in the new apartment!

Peggy Alperin

I wanted to write a letter to let you and anyone else who is thinking of hiring you know how amazing you are. My daughter in law is the person who found you and she sure knows how to pick them. My sister in law and I did not live nearby, and both of us have full time jobs. If it weren’t for you, my mother in law a very spry 87 year old would not have been able to clear out and pack up her house for the move to New Jersey to be near her daughter. When you started, the original intent was to have both my in laws move, but unfortunately Irving passed away a few months before we were able to make this move happen.

You did your job, and in the process became a dear friend to Mimi and a liaison to Lori and me. You kept us abreast of what was going on and what still needed to be accomplished. You not only did the sorting and packing, but also helped Mimi with her bills and the sometimes overwhelming task of mounds of paperwork from just day to day living and information that had to be gone through from the passing of Irving.

Helping someone downsize is a monumental task and something that you did above and beyond our expectations. You helped Mimi sell items that she no longer needed or had room to move – which also gave her some needed extra money. You found someone to purchase the old sewing machine from their embroidery business. You found places to donate food, clothing and other items that would be used by many other less fortunate people and give my mother in law a good feeling about giving up her possessions. You helped organize where everything would be placed in her new apartment, and even took many of her framed pictures, removed them from their bulky frames, and put them all together in an album that she can display and visit over and over.

I had never heard of a moving specialist before. I now know how blessed we are to have found you and truly feel that you are an angel on earth. You certainly were all of our guardian angel. If anyone is considering getting someone to assist them in downsizing for any reason whether they have just accumulated a lifetime of items, or like my mother in law moving across the country. They would be extremely lucky to have you help them.

My sincere gratitude…

Sarah Blanshei

My husband and I recently moved from Atlanta to Knoxville. As seniors and considering that we had never seen the apartment, we were of course very concerned about the move. Linda Dunn came to our rescue. She scoped out the apartment, drew up a design for placement of our furniture, unpacked all our furnishings and set up everything to perfection – and did so in the friendliest and most courteous way. We have moved several times and without doubt Dunnrite Transitions has given us the very best service, above and beyond all our other experiences, and moreover, did so at the most reasonable price.