Category: Newsletter

Do you know of a Kentucky Child Care Home or Center that recently opened or that has been in business for a while and is not currently taking advantage of the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP)? If so, please have them contact our Child and Adult Care Food Program Director Kathy Hagan at kathy.hagan@ckcac.org or by calling 270-402-1977 for more information.

Central Kentucky Community Action is a proud sponsor of the CACFP, which helps providers serve healthy meals; keep tuition low, making childcare affordable for parents; and provides access to nutrition education. Up to 3 meals per child may be claimed each day in the CACFP, which is generally Breakfast, Lunch and Afternoon (PM) Snack. CACFP monthly reimbursements are based on the number of creditable meals served and the eligibility of the children being served.

With rising food costs, now’s the time for all Kentucky Child Care Homes and Centers to participate in the CACFP. Let Central Kentucky Community Action help you apply for the CACFP as your sponsor today!

June brings exciting times for Central Kentucky Community Action Council. Summer is a chance for reflection and preparation for many of our programs. Our Head Start preschool classrooms are closed for the summer, our LIHEAP Spring Subsidy period has completed, and we begin a new fiscal year on July 1^st. The Summer is prime hiring and training time for most of our programs, so please send any good candidates to our HR team that need a wonderful place to work!

Many of our teams will be attending the Community Action Kentucky Annual Conference in Lexington from June 10-13. This is a great training and networking opportunity for our folks. I am excited to see our colleagues from across the Commonwealth. We are all doing this work together and this Annual Conference is a great reminder of the importance of Community Actions in Kentucky!

The renovation of CKCAC’s new Hardin County Building in Elizabethtown is nearing completion. We are planning for a ribbon cutting ceremony on August 8^th at 10:30AM and would love to have you join us! 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.

We wish you a wonderful June and hope your Summer is safe and relaxing. As always, thank you for all you do.

Community Collaboration for Children is very busy this Summer with In-home services and attending summer events with Trail of Hope regional Network: Nelson County Community Baby Shower June 17th from 4-6:30, Grayson County Thrive June 24th from 1-5 (central time), Hardin County back to school Events July 22-24^th and more. Trail of Hope Regional Network will meet in person at Hardin County Extension Office in Elizabethtown at 10AM EST on September 16^th. If you are interested in being a network member please reach out to Ronda Bertrand, CCC Network Coordinator at 270-692-7553.

Trail of Hope Regional Networks Build A Bed program has been busy already making sure 86 children have a bed. We are working on sponsorships to purchase bed frames, mattresses, bedding, and pillows. We are looking for baby cribs and toddler beds in good condition. Please let us know if you are interested in supporting this program.

We are super excited to add 11 more Hardin County Elementary schools starting in August. Parent Engagement Meeting Program is helping to prevent truancy in Washington County Elementary, Elizabethtown City Elementary schools and Hardin County Elementary schools.

CCC in-home program is busy with home visits and helping families with community resources. We are always taking new referrals. If you have any questions, please reach out to us. Be safe and have a wonderful summer.

Griffin Manor in Elizabethtown has been sprucing up their flower bed for the Summer. Some of our seniors have enjoyed playing music and blowing bubbles. Marge is the Coordinator at Griffin Manor Senior Center and one of the seniors there at the center Bobby enjoys helping out every day. Come by the center and see the great job they both have done!

The Washington County Senior Center has also been working on their outdoor flower bed. Nina is the Coordinator at the Springfield center. The seniors are going outside more since the weather has gotten nicer. Come join them for a meal and check out their center!

Congregate served over 2,200 meals last week. The new kitchen at the Elizabethtown building has been painted and equipment is being approved and installed. CKCAC is looking for a full-time cook and 2 part-time cooks for our new Hardin County location. If anyone is interested in cooking for our senior centers, call Ms. Melissa Brown at 270-692-2136 extension 603.

Click the link to visit or apply:

https://centralkentuckycommunityactioncouncilinc.applytojob.com/apply

May is Community Action Month! We are celebrating the amazing things that Central Kentucky Community Action is doing across our area all month long! Please follow our Facebook page to learn more.

We are still operating a LIHEAP Spring subsidy program that will run through the end of May. If you know of any folks in our area who need help paying utility bills, please send them to their local CSBG office in each county.

May 18^th is Head Start’s 60^th birthday! 60 years of helping our young people is an amazing achievement! Here is to 60 more!!!

Please watch the interview with Hal B. Goode and gng On Demand to hear more of the amazing things happening with CKCAC!

Thank you for all you do.

Community Connect with Bryan Conover, Executive Director of CKCAC, Inc.

The Senior Companion Program (SCP) is actively looking for volunteers and our numbers are growing!

April was eventful for Congregate Meals Program. The new cooking site in Elizabethtown seems to be progressing with the install of appliances soon and it is great that we have hired a full-time cook with experience for our new kitchen in Hardin County. We will continue to look for two part-time cooks for Hardin County.

Congregate Meals were down in April due to the flooding in our counties and the holiday. Our employees at the Congregate centers are busy with paperwork.

Senior Celebration 2025 will be May 22, 2025, thanks to Lincoln Trail Area Development District for having this event for our seniors in Kentucky. Last year’s Senior Celebration was a success and so will this year’s.

CKCATS is fully staffed with 62 employees and has been busy providing various transportation services to 15 counties:

Marion, Breckinridge, Grayson, Nelson and Larue Counties- we provide General Public, VET, Senior, Department of Corrections, Medicaid and Medicare trips.

Meade and Hardin Counties-we provide Senior trips.

Washington County- we provide Senior, Medicaid and Medicare trips.

Edmonson and Hart Counties-we provide VET trips.

Bullitt, Adair, Boyle, Taylor, and Green Counties- we provide Medicare trips.

CKCATS held their annual Public Hearing meeting on February 26^th at 1pm EST at the CATS Central Office. This meeting is advertised and made available to the public each year to address the needs and concerns of the general public in all counties. Surveys are given to clients and Stakeholders in all counties and the information gathered is used for discussion to help improve transportation services.

During the public meeting, I connected with American Legion Commander, Tom Sparks, who asked me to attend his event, Donuts with VETS at the Marion County Public Library to speak with the veterans about our services. We attended this event on April 3^rd and May 1^st and are working with the veterans on some suggestions on how to increase VET trips.

Executive Director, Bryan Conover, and I attended the R.E.A.C.H. Pre-Release Program on April 24^th at the Marion County Detention Center. This program is held to inform inmates who are eligible for release within a month of the resources that Marion County has that could possibly be of help to them. This is a new program and CKCAC plans to attend each month to help these inmates take advantage of the resources that the community has available for them upon release.

CKCATS is gearing up for the Senior Celebration that will be held on May 22nd at the Pritchard Community Center in Elizabethtown. This is a huge event for Senior participation each year. CKCATS will be providing transportation from the Senior Centers to Pritchard Community Center for all seniors who pre-register for the ride. CKCATS will also have a booth at the Senior Celebration and will be talking with seniors to make them aware of the services that we provide.

Several staff members of the CKCATS team will be attending the Community Action Kentucky (CAK) Conference in Lexington from June 10-12th. We are looking forward to networking and learning valuable information.

At one point, CKCATS went three years without receiving vehicles due to the shortage of the vehicles that we use for transporting. Fortunately, we were able to maintain our current fleet by using funds received from 5339b grant to rehab our fleet. I am happy to report that since February of 2024, CKCATS has received 24 new vehicles that are all wheelchair accessible. 1 of those vehicles was a new bus that was purchased by Louisville Wheels and given to CKCATS. We are currently waiting for the delivery of 2 more new vehicles with 3 more on back order. CKCATS now has enough vehicles and spare vehicles on hand for each county!

CKCATS is fully staffed at this time, but we are continuing to accept applications for future hiring. With that being said, CKCATS has a wonderful and dedicated group of staff! Thanks to the staff for working diligently each day! If you or anyone you know has questions about CKCATS or any of our services, please contact the office at 1-800-242-8225 or 270-692-9313 to speak with any of our experienced verification clerks.

On behalf of Central Kentucky Community Action Council, I hope that you and your loved ones had a great Easter weekend and are looking forward to Spring. We are hard at work supporting the citizens of central Kentucky!

We are operating a LIHEAP Spring subsidy program that will run through the end of May. If you know of any folks in our area who need help paying utility bills, please send them to their local CSBG office in each county.

CKCAC’s new property in Elizabethtown (708 Westport Road) is almost fully renovated. Our contractors with Woodbine Construction anticipate that they will be done with their work by the end of May. We are hoping to begin moving our Elizabethtown/Hardin County programs, including Community Services Block Grant, Elizabethtown Head Start, Senior Congregate Meals, Community Collaboration for Children, Kentucky Works, and Transportation offices by mid-June. Be on the lookout for more information and a ribbon-cutting celebration this summer!

CKCAC is continuing to monitor policy changes at the federal and state levels. I am in constant contact with our Congressional and General Assembly delegations and will continue to work across the Community Action network to identify areas of growth. I want to ensure the longevity and success of CKCAC and appreciate any support you can provide on this journey. We are all in this together!

Thank you for all you do.