Kathy Mills, Author at CKCAC

Public Meeting Notice

Central Kentucky Community Action Transportation Services (CKCATS) is conducting a meeting to identify unmet public transportation needs in the region. Following the meeting all needs will be assessed and potential funding sources reviewed. Where possible the needs identified will be used to develop FY 23-24 Transit Grant applications, however, preparing a request does not guarantee that service will be provided. To thoroughly access the needs of the region a public Coordination meeting has been scheduled for 1:00 p.m. on February 15^th, 2023, at Central Kentucky Community Action Council, INC., 332 Hood Avenue, Lebanon, Kentucky. If you have questions regarding this public input, or would like to submit written comments to attend, please contact Kerri Taylor at (270) 692-9313. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

Goode News – JANUARY 2023

Hal Goode, Executive Director

Are you making a resolution in the new year? Warning: More than half of all resolutions fail, but this year, they don’t have to be yours. Here’s how to identify the right resolution to improve your life, create a plan on how to reach it, and become part of the small group of people that successfully achieve their goal.

Pick the Right Resolution

You’ll give yourself your best shot at success if you set a goal that’s doable — and meaningful too.

You have a realistic plan for achieving your resolution.

Your goals should be smart — and SMART. That’s an acronym from 1981 for specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time bound. It may work for management, but it can also work in setting your resolutions, too.

Specific. Your resolution should be clear. “Making a concrete goal is important rather than just vaguely saying ‘I want to lose weight.’ You want to have a goal: How much weight do you want to lose and at what time interval?”

Measurable. This may seem obvious if your goal is a fitness or weight loss related one, but it’s also important if you’re trying to cut back on something, too. Logging progress into a journal or making notes on your phone or in an app designed to help you track behaviors can reinforce the progress, no matter what your resolution may be.

Achievable. This doesn’t mean that you can’t have big stretch goals. But trying to take too big a step too fast can leave you frustrated or affect other areas of your life to the point that your resolution takes over your life — and both you and your friends and family fail.

Relevant. Is this a goal that really matters to you, and are you making it for the right reasons? If you do it out of the sense of self-hate or remorse or a strong passion in that moment, it doesn’t usually last long.

Time-bound. Like “achievable,” the timeline toward reaching your goal should be realistic, too. That means giving yourself enough time to do it with lots of smaller intermediate goals set up along the way. Focus on these small wins so you can make gradual progress.

Happy New Year and here’s to a prosperous 2023. I know it will be a busy one for our team. More to come…. much more……..

…

Community Services Block Grant (CSBG)

Ellen Leake, CSBG Director

This is the busiest time of year for the Community Services Staff. We completed the Subsidy Component for LIHEAP in December, collaborated with other service organizations in our communities for a successful Christmas Program, and began the LIHEAP Crisis Program earlier this month.

LIHEAP SUBSIDY In our eight county services area, we assisted 3281 families with home heating assistance in the amount of $416,371.00 this program began on October 10, 2022 with the pre-registration, and ran through December 16, 2022. The program proceeded smoothly, with few problems, thanks to the hard work of our dedicated staff members. We, in the Central Office, continue to work to pay all of the vendors and balance the program.

County	Benefit Amount	Families Served
Breckinridge	$55,511.00	440
Grayson	$81,570.00	627
Hardin	$68,658.00	573
Larue	$ 29,101.00	220
Marion	$ 61,559.00	491
Meade	$ 39,004.00	297
Nelson	$ 40,092.00	339
Washington Central Office	$36,698.00 $4,178.00	264 30

LIHEAP Crisis began on January 9, 2023.

We are in the process of completing the annual Needs Assessment Survey Process. An email link has been sent to the Board of Directors for their input. Please select a board member. This survey information will be entered into a database for accurate compilation. The results of the Needs Assessment Survey will determine the work plan for the next program year. The information will also be available to other programs and to the community.

Wintercare, Winterhelp, Warmhearts – These Programs are available to families for utility assistance. These funds are donated by utility customers as they pay their utility bill, and sometimes matched by the utility company in local areas.

Thank you to all the staff members who work so hard to balance all of these different programs and assist those in need. Their amazing efforts are greatly appreciated in our communities. We have a great team!

Kentucky Works Program

Tommy Wheatley, Kentucky Works 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. The state of emergency that the state of Kentucky had implemented with a “Good Cause Exemption” where clients are not required to participate in the programs was lifted on July 1^st, however there were no sanctions being levied for non-participation until December 2022 so participation is still low.

· We currently have 24 clients that are employed in the K-TAP Program, and 6 clients that are at a site gaining work experience. The referrals have picked up with the state of emergency ending and sanctions now being implemented for non-compliance. Our Employment Specialists continue to follow up with each of these clients and track the hours they are working. We served 67 clients in the K-Tap program for the second quarter of the fiscal year ending December 31, 2022 which more than doubles the number we served in the last quarter, and is 41 more than we served for all of the last fiscal year.

· 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 1060 referrals for the SNAP program during the last fiscal year.

· We continue to stay in touch with employers and if we do get referrals, we match the client’s 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 some of them are still unable to accept our referrals. We have 124 sites in our 17 counties that we send our clients and as of now, 67 are open and/or willing to accept referrals due to Covid-19. Staff visited these sites in October to update paperwork and check to see if they were needing workers and are currently in the process of checking again.

· Our staff continues to stay in touch to discuss all relative matters in the program. We have staff meetings every other month. We are now conducting our staff meetings in person.

· 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.

Low-Income Sector Board Election

Central Kentucky Community Action Council Inc. is soliciting nominations for a person to represent the families of low-income in Larue, Marion and Washington County on the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors meet six (6) times per year, in January, March, May, July, September and November. The Meetings are routinely held in Elizabethtown, at the Lincoln Trail Area Development District Conference Room, on the third Wednesday afternoon at 2:30. Mileage to and from the meetings will be reimbursed. Please submit nominations to your Community Action Office by January 20^th, 4:00pm prior to the election date. Nominations will also be accepted at the opening of the meeting. The Election will be held at the Larue, Marion and Washington County Community Action Office on Tuesday , January 24, 2023, at 10:00am

Larue 112 North Walters, Hodgenville, KY 42748

Marion 334 Hood Ave., Lebanon, KLY 40033

Washington 394 Lincoln Drive, Suite 2, Springfield, KY 40069

CKCAC Area Board of Directors Meeting

As a non-profit agency, Central Kentucky Community Action, Inc. is required to inform the local community of the Area Board of Directors Meeting which is open to the public. The meeting will be on Wednesday, January 18, 2023, at 2:30 PM EST at the Lincoln Trail Area Development District meeting room in Elizabethtown, KY. For more information, call the Central Office at 270-692-2136.

LIHEAP Crisis Enrollment opens January 9, 2023

Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) Crisis Enrollment Opens at Central Kentucky Community Action Council, Inc. January 9^th.

Heating crisis assistance available in Breckinridge, Grayson, Hardin, Larue, Marion, Meade Nelson, Washington, applicants encouraged to apply as soon as possible.

Lebanon, Ky. (January 4, 2023): The Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) Crisis Component is available to assist households experiencing a home heating crisis situation. Central Kentucky Community Action Council, Inc. will be accepting applications first come, first serve January 9 through March 31, 2023, or until funds have been expended.

Income eligibility requirements are up to 130 percent of the Federal Poverty Guidelines. The applicant must be responsible for home heating costs or pay heating costs as an undesignated portion of rent. Assistance received during prior LIHEAP Components does not impact a household’s eligibility.

Crisis benefits will cover the minimum needed to alleviate the crisis not to exceed the Community Action Agency’s local cost for a deliverable supply of the household’s primary heating fuel or $400 for gas or electric. Households can reapply each time they experience a crisis situation until they reached their maximum benefit. Benefits are paid directly to the primary fuel vendor.

Central Kentucky Community Action Council, Inc. operates outreach offices in Breckinridge, Grayson, Hardin, Larue, Marion, Meade Nelson, Washington. Applicants should apply at their local Community Action outreach office. To locate your local office, please call phone number listed below or www.ckcac.org.

Breckinridge 270-756-6813

Grayson 270-259-3500

Hardin 270-234-5853

Larue 270-358-3937

Marion 270-692-6411

Meade 270-422-2545

Nelson 502-348-9596

Washington 859-336-7766

All applicants will be required to supply the following documentation at the time of application:

Proof of Social Security Number or Permanent Residence card (Green Card) for each member of the household.
Proof of all household’s (all members) income from the preceding month.
Most current heating bill, statement from your landlord if heating expenses are included in your rent, statement from utility company if you participate in a Pre-Pay Electric Program.
The account number and name on the account for main heating fuel sources and electric bill.

Community Action Kentucky administers LIHEAP in partnership with the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services who receive the funding as a pass-through block grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. More information about LIHEAP and a listing of LIHEAP outreach offices can be found at the Community Action Kentucky website at www.CAPKY.org.

About Central Kentucky Community Action Council, Inc.

About Community Action Kentucky

Community Action Kentucky is the statewide association representing and assisting all 23 Community Action agencies across Kentucky that work to empower individuals and families to attain greater economic stability and long-term success. With a presence in all 120 Kentucky counties, Community Action agencies provide life-changing resources and programs to support a wide array of service areas, including food security, transportation, home energy, early childhood education, senior support, emergency services, housing assistance, workforce development, youth enrichment and more. As a statewide voice for local agencies, Community Action Kentucky works to address policy issues that impact low-income individuals and cultivates broad-reaching partnerships that improve the lives of thousands of Kentuckians, making it possible for them to achieve their goals. For more information about Community Action Kentucky, visit www.CAPKY.org.