Category: Newsletter

Congregate Meals Program – August Update

We are continuing to serve over 2,000 meals weekly to seniors at our Centers’ an incredible effort that reflects our dedication to supporting our communities.

The new kitchen in Elizabethtown is nearly ready for use. We are still in need of a full-time and a part-time cook to join our team. We’re pleased to welcome a newly hired cook who brings valuable experience from her time cooking in the military.

We held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new Elizabethtown building on August 8th. The facility looks fantastic inside and out, and we are truly blessed to have such a space for the many programs that will operate there daily.

Meade County’s kitchen also received a much-needed facelift, including expanded space to better serve our seniors.

Additionally, we were recently gifted new games and cards, which our seniors are already enjoying during their time at the centers.

Central KY Community Action Transportation Services (CKCATS)

The CKCATS team continues to work hard to provide services in all counties. Medicare and Medicaid trips continue to keep our staff busy.

CKCATS took a total of 67 Seniors to the Senior Celebration in Elizabethtown on May 22nd. The event turned out very successful with it serving nearly 500 Seniors in the Lincoln Trail area! It was a day full of connection, celebration, and community. We are very proud to participate and partner in making this event successful each year.

CKCATS attended the annual contract meeting with our Brokers on June 17th and June 20th. These meetings are held each year to sign new contracts, discuss new rates, and any issues or concerns that any of the sub-contractors may have. All was well on both ends.

CKCATS set up a booth at Senior Fair Day at the Fairgrounds in Marion County on July 2nd and at the LaRue County Senior Day at the LaRue Co. Extension Office on August 1st. These are other successful events that are held each year for the Seniors in Marion and LaRue counties. Seniors get to eat, play games, listen to music, and congregate with other Seniors while learning about the services that are offered to them in their area.

Several staff members from the CKCATS team attended the Community Action Kentucky (CAK) Conference in Lexington from June 10-12. This was a very informative training that consisted of a day that concentrated on transportation and other tracks that focused on leadership and management skills.

CKCATS fleet has improved tremendously within a year with the newly received fleet. We are excited for our passengers to ride in our new vehicles and are grateful that we are able to give them a pleasant experience during transport. We are now in the process of going through our old fleet that has met their useful life so that we can junk or sale these vehicles to have more room for our new vehicles. Currently, we are waiting for 2 more new transit vehicles that are on back order.

We have been in the process of transitioning between our old scheduling software to our new scheduling software. I am excited to announce that on August 1st, we have completely transitioned to our new software called TripMaster. Along with the scheduling software, we have replaced our paper manifests with tablets for the drivers as well as new cameras for all of our vehicles. TripMaster includes camera software that consists of GPS and live view of our vehicles. This transition has been needed for a long time. All of our staff has worked hard to learn the new system and they are excited about the new changes.

CKCATS continues to accept applications for future hiring. If you or anyone you know would like to join the staff at CKCATs please go to: careers@ckcac.org                    or https://centralkentuckycommunityactioncouncilinc.applytojob.com/apply to apply.

Executive Director’s Report – August 2025

Summer is in full heat wave mode around Central Kentucky! Our Summer LIHEAP Subsidy program is open and continues until mid-September. Please make sure anyone who needs help with their utility bills contacts their local CSBG offices, ASAP!

It has been a good month for CKCAC. On August 6th, Congressman Brett Guthrie visited our new Hardin County Building and took a tour. He spoke with LIHEAP clients and CKCAC staff. We had positive conversations with the Congressman. He stated we have his full support for our Community Action programs across the Commonwealth and nation. We are very thankful for him and his staff’s time.

On Friday, August 8th, we held our ribbon cutting ceremony for the Hardin County Building. It was a wonderful event with over 75 attendees. Thank you to Lt. Governor Jacqueline Coleman, gng On Demand, CINTAS, The Alchemy Collaborative, and Hardin County’s Chamber of Commerce for sponsoring and helping make the day go so well. Also, thank you to CKCAC’s Board of Directors and our staff for helping to celebrate this occasion. We received some great media coverage from the day, as well:

WLKY-

https://www.wlky.com/article/head-start-preschool-opens-elizabethtown-affordable-child-care/65639779

The News Enterprise-

https://www.thenewsenterprise.com/news/local/community-service-agency-officially-opens-at-new-location/article_c115cb7d-0a73-5f7d-befb-b4ac1a350392.html

We are watching closely as we are near the end of the federal fiscal year and the end of this current continuing resolution. However, the wonderful support from community partners and elected officials that we have received this month gives us hope for positive outcomes as we prepare for the next budget cycle.

As always, thank you for all you do.

 

 

Kentucky Works Program

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, 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.

  • We currently have 93 clients that are employed in the K-TAP Program. This is up 10 workers since the last quarter and up 43 form two quarters ago. Our Employment Specialists continue to follow up with each of these clients and track the hours they are working. We served 81 clients in the K-Tap program for the quarter ending June 30th, 2025. We placed 75 clients in the quarter. We served 343 KTAP clients for the fiscal year and placed 288 in employment opportunities.
  • 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 served 551 clients for the SNAP program during quarter ending June 30th, 2025.
  • 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.
  • Our staff continues to stay in touch with staff meeting every other month, either in person or virtually to discuss all relative matters in the program.
  • 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 had our annual monitoring of the program from the state and the report was good with no findings

Weatherization At Work For The Clients We Serve

The Weatherization Program provides weatherization services to our 8 county area. Our final numbers for the contract year are as follows: 21 completed units, 0 jobs in progress, and 36 deferrals. The Weatherization Program is utilizing contractors to perform weatherization work, QCI inspections, HVAC and Electrical work that we must perform to the dwellings receiving services.

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

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT – JULY 2025

The summer heat is upon us and CKCAC is working hard. Our Summer LIHEAP Subsidy program begins on July 28 and will run until September 12 or until funds run out. Please make sure anybody who needs help with utility bills contacts their local Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) offices during this time!

The renovation of CKCAC’s new Hardin County Building in Elizabethtown is complete! Staff are beginning to move in and we are getting ready for the upcoming Head Start school year. CKCAC is hosting a ribbon cutting ceremony on August 8th at 10:30am and would love to have you join us! We are VERY excited to announce that Lieutenant Governor Jaqueline Coleman will be speaking at our event! This project will be a $4 million investment by CKCAC and our Board of Directors in the future of Hardin County and the essential services we provide.

Please continue to let your networks know about the open positions we have across many programs. We would love to get to full staffing levels before the end of the summer! It allows us to better serve our community and clients, as well.

As always, thank you for all you do.

Community Services Block Grant (CSBG)-Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)

The Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) Summer enrollment will begin on July 28 and run through September 12, 2025.

Summer Cooling Component is designed to help offset the cost of a household’s electric cost, providing eligible households with a one-time benefit depending on income levels and housing category.

Applications will be accepted during the enrollment period, on a first-come, first-serve basis. Income eligibility for the program is up to and including 150% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines. The benefits are paid directly to the household’s electric vendor.

Interested households should contact their local Community Action Agency office to apply.

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

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

Summer Subsidy DOES NOT require a disconnect notice, a past due bill, or eviction notice. The Subsidy benefit can be applied as a credit on your account. Assistance received during previous LIHEAP components does not affect household’s eligibility.

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.

Congregate Meals Program

The Senior Congregate Meals Program is looking to hire in our New Hardin County Building located at 708 Westport Road; Elizabethtown KY. We are looking for a part-time and a full-time cook at our Hardin County Kitchen. If anyone knows someone looking for a cooking position, please have them call our Central Office at 270-692-2136 and ask for Melissa Brown.

Congregate Meals is serving over 2,000 meals weekly and our meals are continuing to grow. If you are age 60 then come join us for a meal.

The seniors are enjoying the warmer weather by going outside at some of our centers in our 8 counties.

Click the link to visit or apply:

https://centralkentuckycommunityactioncouncilinc.applytojob.com/apply

Community Services Block Grant (CSBG)-Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)

 

 

 

 

***Updated Hardin Community Services Information

Call us for an appointment and bring in the required documents to apply for LIHEAP assistance.

Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) Summer Cooling will begin July 28 and runs through September 12, 2025.
Applications will be accepted during the enrollment period, on a first-come, first-serve basis. Income eligibility for the program is up to and including 150% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines. The benefits are paid directly to the household’s electric vendor.
Interested households should contact their local Community Action Agency office to apply.
All applicants will be required to supply the following documentation at the time of application:
1. Proof of Social Security Number or Permanent Residence card (Green Card) for each member of the household.
2. Proof of all household’s (all members) income from the preceding month.
3. Most current electric bill, statement from your landlord if electric is included in your rent, statement from utility company if you participate in a Pre-Pay Electric Program.
4. The account number and name on the account for main heating fuel sources and electric bill.
Summer Subsidy DOES NOT require a disconnect notice, a past due bill, or eviction notice. The Subsidy benefit can be applied as a credit on your account. Assistance received during previous LIHEAP components does not affect household’s eligibility.
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.