Author: J Miles

CHILD AND ADULT CARE FOOD PROGRAM

After five months of not having any centers or homes temporarily close due to COVID, the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) is starting to experience more closures than ever before. In the month of August alone there were seven centers and five homes, that participate in the program, that had to shut down and quarantine for ten days. This is not only difficult for the centers and their staff but for the parents of the students attending. Since children 12 and under are still not allowed to receive the vaccination, we do not foresee the closures dying down anytime soon.

The Child and Adult Care Food Program assists 53 childcare centers and family care homes in our region with receiving reimbursement to help offset the costs of serving nutritious meals and snacks to children in their care.

Many certified childcare homes can qualify for this reimbursement program as well as many daycare centers across the state. If you are interested in learning more about how you can participate, please call the director, Jane Claire, at 270-402-1977.

Goode News

Goode News – September 2021 

I recently spoke along with Frank Thompson, a Senior Citizen who attends the Senior Congregate meals in Bardstown, at the kick off for the Tri County United Way.   Frank spoke about the funds given that went toward the Senior Centers meals in Marion, Nelson and Washington County.

The Tri-County Kentucky United Way is an organization aimed at promoting teamwork among the Human and Health service agencies serving the people in Marion, Nelson and Washington Counties and providing a one stop donation method for those concerned with the health and welfare of their neighbors, friends and family living, working and visiting our counties.

Tri-County Kentucky fights for the Education, Financial Stability and Health of every person in every community in Marion, Nelson, and Washington Counties.  They bring people together to tackle tough issues and to develop sustainable solutions.  Through your support, local programs are currently addressing the needs of those that need it most.

The Tri County United Way support programs and discussions that provide the building blocks for a good quality of life and help to build stronger communities. The building blocks are:

Education: Offer a comprehensive approach to education that spans from cradle to career to help children and youth stay on track and succeed in school

Financial Stability: Assist and empower people to get on stable financial ground to help individuals and communities thrive and succeed

Health: Promote assistance to individuals suffering from issues such as substance abuse, physical and mental illness, aging, domestic violence, disability, or lack of health insurance.

We appreciate the many efforts of the Tri County United Way and the Executive Director Laura Sedlatschek.  Reach out and consider a donation today by emailing her at  director@tricountykyuw.org.  

More to come, much more…………

Welcome Back to School!

The Head Start and Early Head Start program has begun the 2021-2022 school year on a positive note.  Students, families, and employees are grateful for In-Person instruction and are hopeful to continue in this manner.  Parents and teachers, as a community, are working together to support their children emotionally and academically.  Researched based curriculums such as Frog Street Press, Second Steps, and Conscious Discipline are making a difference as we engage children during the Global Pandemic to manage the new norm.  Safety procedures have been established according to CDC guidelines and carried out in all of our Head Start locations to include masks requirements when counties are at the red or orange level in accordance to reported COVID cases. 

Based on reflective surveys and open communication, Head Start and Early Head Start administration has implemented strategies that not only benefit the families and their children but also supports the employees.  One big change for this school year is the addition of a third teacher in each classroom in our region.  This is not only another way to ensure the safety of children throughout the day but also allows for more one on one academic time.  The Springfield and Lebanon Head Start centers began their school year in new facilities.  Both facilities are a modern take on the Head Start center and offer plenty of space and opportunities for learning.  We appreciate the community and parents for their patience, feedback, and suggestions as the arrival and departure procedures were planned and executed in a timely method.  Transportation is now being offered at several of our locations as new buses are begin dispersed across our service area.  The new buses provide a safe and accommodating environment to transport children to and from school.  Parents have the opportunity to take part in Parent University.  Parent University is a community collaborative that supports parents as full partners in their children’s education.  The program offers free courses, family events, and activities to foster new/additional skills, knowledge, resources and confidence.  The goal of Parent University is to raise children who are successful in school and in life.  As September begins, students are learning about their senses, feelings, and families.  Learning more about ourselves, our community, and the world around us leads to children who are more compassionate and resilient. 

        

CKCATS RIDES INCREASE

CKCATS is back up and running 90% trip capacity for the month of July 2021. This is very encouraging that we had such a rapid recovery from Covid-19 for clients requesting transportation.
August 2021 Covid cases seem to be sky rocketing and we already had news that the Senior Centers closed their doors once again on August 9th. We will still be transporting clients for the drive thru meals.
Hal Goode spoke with Sue Greenwell at LTADD about adding an additional medical trip each week to our 5 county area. The Seniors can book 2 medical trips per week, along with the daily Senior Center trips once per week.
CKCATS newest bus for Marion County is CK-127. It features a wrap with the Community Action logo and advertises our agency’s positions that are available.
We are still waiting on 3 SUV’s that were supposed to be delivered in February but was put on hold due to a chip malfunction at the automakers. That may also cause a hold in 5 other buses that have been ordered after we received funding from the 5339 grant, along with 4 additional buses that were funded by the 5311 CARES funding.

Covid-19 Causes our Senior Centers to Close again.

All senior centers re-opened to dine in meals on July 6, 2021. We continued to serve drive thru meals to those that were still uncomfortable with coming inside.
Unfortunately, Covid cases have spiked across the state forcing us to make the difficult decision to close our centers to the public once again. We are saddened to have to do this but we have to put the safety of our clients and staff first.
On August 9, 2021 all senior centers once again closed their doors and started serving meals via drive thru only.
If you know someone in need of a hot nutritious meal please have them call their local senior center to get started. Senior Center phone numbers can be found on our Central Kentucky Community Action Facebook page or on our website at www.ckcac.org
In the month of July there were 5,117 meals served to 416 unduplicated clients. We also slowly started our Bingocize sessions at a couple of locations. We provided 49 sessions to 21 clients in July. We will continue to do Bingocize outdoors, weather permitting, drive in style until we can once again re-open our centers.
We would like to congratulate Grayson County Senior Center cook, Mary Schwartz on the birth of her son born on July 28, 2021. We would also like to welcome Leslie Breeding to our Congregate Meal team. Leslie will step up to the head cook position at Grayson County. If you know someone who could use our service please call us anytime.

Volunteer your Time

Central Kentucky Community Action’s Retired & Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) is looking for more volunteers. The only requirements are that the volunteers must be 55 or older and have a desire to volunteer their time and skills for a non-profit organization in Hardin or Nelson County.

Volunteering can provide many benefits to both mental and physical health.       

Volunteering helps counteract the effects of stress, anger, and anxiety.   

Volunteering combats depression and loneliness.     

 Volunteering makes you happy and keeps you active.      

Volunteering increases self-confidence.    

 Volunteering provides a sense of purpose. 

If you would like more information on what volunteer opportunities are available and the benefits of being a RSVP volunteer, please contact Melissa Bland at 270-737-1059 or RSVP.Director@ckcac.org.  

Goode News

Director Tommy Wheatley with Kentucky Works/SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) & I recently attended the Lincoln Trail Annual Workforce Summit that was held as a virtual event. It was a great opportunity to hear from local community members, business owners, hiring managers, service provider educators and others that are interested in making our workforce stronger.
Why would Central Kentucky Community Action Council follow this? As we move out of COVID-19 it is as important now as ever to break any barrier for someone looking for an occupation. Of course, a candidate needs to have the necessary skills to excel in the position, but maybe it’s time to look more closely at your hiring policies to help broaden applicant potential so your pool becomes much bigger. Here is just one common barrier you might consider tackling to facilitate. One example. Transportation. If you can’t get to work, you can’t hold down a job. If you can’t get to an interview, you can’t get a job in the first place. It could be a lack of transportation from a remote location, getting to work is a major barrier for many otherwise employable professionals.  Here at CKCAC we have always suggested the option of our CATS Transportation for that ride to an occupation.  Just another resource to break a barrier.
Thanks to the Lincoln Trail Workforce Development Board for being increasingly engaged in the business of collaboration, convening and partnership. More to come, much more……………..

Employment Is Priority for CSBG

NEW PROGRAM YEAR 2021-2022 The Work Plan and Budget has been approved and signed for Community Services Block Grant in the amount of $724,658.

The program priority is EMPLOYMENT. This was determined by the most recent Needs Assessment. CLOSING PROGRAM YEAR 2020-2021. The CSBG Staff has been busy closing out one Program Year and beginning a new one. Staff members have worked diligently to enter all services that had been provided into the computer. We followed up on many clients so that we could also report the outcome of our efforts through NPI’s and services report for regular CSBG and CARES. The CSBG Staff have assisted 14,701 Individuals 6,907 Households-unduplicated count. Approximately 18,522 applications for $4,096,404.50 in services.

SPRING SUBSIDY ended on June 30, 2021 with GARDENS 170 individual gardens are planted and flourishing with the recent rains .

YOUTH PROGRAMS – The Youth Programs carried out in the Counties have been exciting. We want to provide opportunities for children who may not have them otherwise. We were able to obtain a discounted family pass for one year with the Louisville Zoo and 56 families took advantage of the opportunity. 36 families received swim passes or lessons. Thanks to all of the staff for their hard work with the various programs operated by Community Services.