Author: J Miles

Courtney Campbell, SCP Director

The Senior Companion Program is so happy to be back to in-person volunteering! In-services were held in the months of March and April, and May’s is in the works. Everyone was excited to see each other after in-home services had been suspended for over two years due to COVID-19.

As of April 14, 2022, AmeriCorps announced all volunteers in SCP will receive a raise on their hourly stipend amount from $3.00 an hour to $3.15 an hour. This will go into effect July 1, 2022.

Two Lead Volunteer positions have been filled, leaving only one vacancy for that role which is in the Breckinridge County serving area. Leader positions receive an extra $50 a month for their roles and responsibilities which include, but are not limited to: the recruitment of new volunteers; assisting with fundraising and in-kind efforts; explaining the duties and benefits of volunteering in the program to potential volunteers; signing on new clients; informing the public about the services that the Senior Companion Program offers; and, working closely with the program director to ensure the program operates to its fullest potential. There have also been several new clients that have been taken on by our volunteers. We have had several Seniors reach out who are possibly interested in joining to be a volunteer, so I am hopeful that we can start bringing aboard some more volunteers in the near future!

Melissa Bland, RSVP Director

Ms. Betty Bryant started working as a Volunteer for the Retired Seniors Volunteer Program (RSVP) at the Griffin Manor Senior Center in Elizabethtown in October 2020.

Betty helps Ida Kyle, the Senior Center Coordinator, plate the food and serve to the seniors 3 days a week. She often refers to herself as “the bread lady” as she places the bread in sandwich bags.

Betty was born and raised in Wilmington North Carolina but has lived in Kentucky for the last 40 years. Betty has two sons, 9 grandchildren and 1 great grandchild.

She worked at the Fort Knox Hospital as a desk clerk for 17 years and was also caregiver for a friend in her home for one year.

Betty enjoys genealogy, crocheting and embroidering. She volunteers as she loves people and likes to get of the house every day.

Betty’s positive attitude is contagious, and she is a joy to be around! Feel free to stop by the Senior Center to meet Betty and the other seniors!

If you would like to become a volunteer like Betty please contact Melissa Bland at 270-737-1059 or RSVP.Director@ckcac.org.

Kerri Taylor, CKCATS Director

It has been a busy year for CKCATS so far. Since January 1, CKCATS’ trip capacity continues to remain over 90%. From January 1 through April 30th, CKCATS vehicles traveled 529,611 miles in 104 days!

The 5310, 5311, and 5339 Grants were submitted by the April 1 deadline. OTD has contacted all agencies about the shortage of 12X2 and 8×2 vehicles requested in Bid#8 and Bid#9. OTD is predicting that the larger vehicles will not be available for at least another 42 months and asking agencies to consider low floor mini vans, which are more readily available. CKCATS plans to request 2 low floor mini vans for each county, along with rehab funding to maintain our current fleet.

OTD announced a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) to apply for approximately $372 million in federal fiscal year 2022 competitive Section 5339(b) grant funding for transit Bus and Bus Facilities. The purpose of the Buses and Bus Facilities Program is to assist in the financing of buses and bus facilities capital projects, including replacing, rehabilitating, purchasing, or leasing buses or related equipment, and rehabilitating, purchasing, constructing, or leasing bus-related facilities. CKCATS requested funding to purchase expansion vehicles for a Pilot Program that will take individuals to and from work. We hope to break the transportation barrier that some face in gaining employment and remaining employed. We also requested funding to rehabilitate some of our parking lots where we park our fleet.

CKCATS attended the voucher handout for seniors in Meade County. We had a CATS vehicle on site and handed out brochures to seniors to promote and gain more senior participation with IIIB Transportation in that area.

CKCATS has hired a few new part-time and full-time drivers in Marion, Larue, and Breckinridge Counties but we are always looking for more. If you or anyone you know is interested in driving for CATS either full-time or part-time, please go to careers@ckcac.org to apply.

Tommy Wheatley, KY Works Program Director

The Kentucky Works Program supports the Kentucky Transitional Assistance Program (K-TAP) and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in the following Kentucky counties: Anderson, Breckinridge, Bullitt, Franklin, Grayson, Hardin, Henry, Larue, Marion, Meade, Nelson, Oldham, Shelby, Spencer, Trimble, Washington, and Woodford. Our goal is to assess these individuals to identify barriers and work to overcome those barriers to make them self- sufficient. We also have job readiness classes to help with resumes, job search, job interviews, etc.

COVID-19 continues to have a significant impact on both of our programs. While there is a current state of emergency, the state of Kentucky has implemented a “Good Cause exemption” where clients are not required to participate in the programs. This good cause exemption is currently in effect through 6-30-2022, but all indications show it will end at that date. I am currently working with staff to start returning to our offices at least in a hybrid fashion, with the expectation of returning full time sometime in May. 

• We currently have 6 clients that are employed in the K-TAP Program, and the referrals seem to be picking up in the last couple of weeks. Our Employment Specialists continue to follow up with each of these clients and track the hours they are working.
• On the SNAP Employment and Training program we continue to reach out to these clients and complete assessments when they are referred to us. We had 333 referrals for the SNAP program during the last quarter which was double the prior quarter.
• We continue to stay in touch with employers and if we do get referrals, we match the clients skills with the employer needs to have a good match. We call new employers each week and keep a current job listing for each county we serve.
• We continue to see an impact with COVID on our Work Experience Program sites as many of them are either closed or unable to accept our referrals. We updated those sites in March and the numbers taking volunteers has improved. We have 135 sites in our 17 counties that we send our clients and as of now, 61 are open and/or willing to accept referrals due to COVID-19. This is up a little since last quarter.
• Our staff continues to stay in touch virtually to discuss all relative matters in the program. We have staff meetings every other month. We plan on starting in person staff meetings again in May instead of zoom.
• We continue to offer a wage subsidy program where if an employer hires one of our K-TAP clients they will be reimbursed for a portion of their wages during the first six month of employment.
• We have been approved for the KTAP and SNAP E & T contract for July 2022 through June 2024.
• We recently hired a new employee, Marissa Black, to cover Larue and Bullitt counties. Her start date was 4-4-2022.

Ellen Leake, CSBG Program Director

LIHEAP CRISIS –Staff members have processed 5,869 Crisis Applications for 3,645 families between January 10, 2022 and April 7, 2022 for a total of $1,548,380.24 in benefits. A SPRING SUBSIDY Program will begin in May.

LIHWAP CRISIS 781 applications completed for 752 families to date. $96,436.81 spent.

LIHWAP Subsidy 1614 applications completed for 1614 families to date. $514,950.00 spent.

Kentucky Utilities Heating Assistance Program – The Community Services Staff has 228 active participants in the KU Heating Assistance Program. Through this program, eligible Kentucky Utility customers will receive an $88.00 credit on their electric bill during the seven months of expected highest electricity usage. The total value of this program equals $140,448.00 for these families. To qualify for the program the family must: be a KU customer, have made an application for LIHEAP Subsidy and keep bills current, not going into disconnect.

Educational Scholarship Program – Scholarship Packets have been delivered to the Principals and Counselors at each High School and Vocational School, and the Adult Learning Centers in our service area, informing them of this program. Students are encouraged to apply for the scholarships that are paid directly to the college or technical school for tuition or books.

Community Needs Assessment – The Community Needs Assessment has been completed. The results will be used to establish the Priorities for the CSBG Work Plan that will be included in the 2022-2023 CSBG Budget Proposal. Thanks to all who completed the Needs Assessment Survey Form. 1400 surveys were completed.

OVERALL NEED
Answer Choices	Responses
Employment	64.0%	896
Education	48.5%	679
Income and Asset Building	37.5%	525
Housing	64.14%	898
Health	46.29%	648
Civic Engagement	4.79%	67
Support Services (supporting multiple domains)	34.79%	487
	Answered	1400

David Lindsey, WX Program Director

Central Kentucky Community Action’s Weatherization Program is fully staff and working to finish open projects to close out the 2021/22 fiscal year. CKCAC’s weatherization program experienced some setbacks to start out the new year with staff acquiring injury’s outside of work. We utilized that time to achieve new required trainings as well as cross train staff to meet requirements set forth by the US Department of Energy so if these incidences were to arise again we would be able to continue providing Weatherization services. As of January 1, 2022 CKCAC has 57 clients on the waiting list to receive Weatherization services. The Weatherization Program as of January 1, 2022 is providing weatherization services to our 8 county area with 7 completed units, 8 walkaways, 6 jobs in progress. The Weatherization Program is fully staffed with an in-house crew and we are utilizing contractors to perform HVAC and Electrical work that we have to perform to the dwellings receiving services. We look forward to the future of the new contract year of CKCAC’s weatherization program to progress and better serve our 8 county service area.

Our goal with weatherization is to continue to reduce energy waste and assure the health and safety of each client we serve through testing consisting of; aliening air and thermal boundaries, pressure diagnostics, heating system diagnostics, indoor air quality, and base load energy consumption diagnostics.

Central Kentucky Community Action Council’s Weatherization (WX) program is fully staffed with a highly trained supporting and technical staff consisting of Denny Baxter Dwelling Needs Evaluator EA/QCI Josh Mattingly Crew Leader, Tessa Hinton Retrofit Installer, and supporting staff Barbara Garrett Weatherization Manager. We would like to say a huge thank you to all WX staff for their dedication for improving the quality of work and the dedication to ensure the health and safety of all the clients we serve.

Central Kentucky Community Action Council has leveraged funds from utilities to expand the reach of the Weatherization Assistance Program. This year we are leveraging funding from DOE, LIHEAP, ATMOS, East Kentucky Power, Big Rivers Electric, Kentucky Utilities, and Louisville Gas & Electric.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT

Hal Goode, Executive Director

Why start a career in weatherization? Through our Weatherization Assistance Program, Central Kentucky Community Action works to reduce energy waste and assure the health and safety of each client we serve. Trained technicians can help qualifying low-income families improve the overall energy efficiency of their homes, saving money and enhancing the quality of life for residents. Our service territory includes Breckinridge, Grayson, Hardin, Larue, Marion, Meade, Nelson and Washington counties. Weatherization will allow you to earn competitive wages while you learn – the cost of your training is covered, paid benefits can include health care, retirement, vacation, and sick leave.
Choose a career pathway that is technical or administrative, depending on your interest.  Here are some potential careers: 

• Retrofit Installer Technician – Installs home energy-saving upgrades
• Client Intake Specialist – Confirms client eligibility for the program
• WAP Program Manager – Oversees program staff, planning, and performance
• Quality Control Inspector – Ensures quality and completion of installed energy-saving upgrades
• Energy Auditor – Examines homes to identify energy-saving upgrades
• Crew Leader – Supervises installation of home energy-saving upgrades

Your skills and experience move with you anywhere in the country. Since 1976, weatherization has grown into a multibillion-dollar industry, with work in every county and state. Your work can improve your neighborhood and help the most vulnerable residents by making their homes safer to live in and more energy efficient.
Do you have a… Sample Career Pathway Depending on experience and qualifications. A willingness to learn, positive attitude and strong work ethic? A desire to help your community and the environment. Then a career in weatherization may be a good fit for you! Contact Weatherization Director David Lindsey with any questions.  

Tammy Stanley, Head Start Program Director

Our Family Advocates are busy recruiting for the upcoming school year, as they continue to assist families in setting and meeting family goals. Bardstown Family Advocate, Antonia Young is a great example of how Head Start can assist in meeting goals set by families.  Antonia first met Brooke Wheatley in the fall of 2019 to complete registration paperwork for her son Brayden to start the new school year. She was working as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) for Colonial Nursing Home. 

Antonia and Brooke discussed the family partnership agreement (FPA), which entails setting goal(s) with a family to work towards. Brooke decided that she would set a short-term goal for Brayden to get along and play with other children. As they talked, she mentioned that she would love to own her own home but felt that it would be a long shot because she is a single mom. Antonia encouraged her to continue to do what’s best for her family and to never give up on her dream of owning a home. While Brayden attended Head Start, Brooke was busy working on their future. Brooke’s determination paid off! They moved into their new house the first week of December!

Bardstown Head Start will miss both Brooke and Brayden, as he will be going to kindergarten next year. Brooke has set an example for so many others and will be remembered as someone who has set high standards for herself and her family.