Gifts to Our Community

By Carrie Vittitoe

It has often been difficult to find the positives in a year like 2020, but our community is full of them, and if the year has taught us anything, it is that we work best when we work together in a shared vision and effort. These people bring their gifts of time, talent, or treasure to organizations to make positive changes in our community and the world.

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Dawn Bianconcini, a co-founder of APRON, says that taking care of our independent restaurants has never been more critical.

When APRON began in 2011, co-founders Dawn and Luca Bianconcini envisioned it as an organization that would help local independent restaurant workers when they encountered shortterm difficulties — like a broken arm — that would temporarily impact their ability to work. Never in a million years did they anticipate COVID-19 and its impact on the food service and tourism industries.

Over the years, APRON has provided grants to restaurant workers for things like broken bones but also for cancer treatments. APRON has helped workers when their restaurants flooded or had a fire or a roof collapse, and they weren’t able to work until those problems were resolved. With COVID-19, the needs of restaurants and their staffs are even greater. This year alone, APRON has given hundreds of thousands of dollars as part of nearly 700 grants.

Typically, APRON’s three largest fundraisers are A Taste of Independents, Dine Around, and the Maker’s Mark Distillery Tour, but the pandemic has made it impossible to have those events safely. This year’s fundraiser, which is scheduled for the remainder of 2020 and into 2021, is Chef in a Box. Each week, a different chef from a local restaurant creates a signature dish for two to go. Of the $50 cost, half goes to APRON and half supports the restaurant. This unique outside-the-box concept has been hugely popular because so many beloved independent restaurants are participating. Dawn says local chefs are now competing to see which one can come up with the most interesting meals when it is their “Chef in a Box” week. “It’s been one of our most successful fundraisers,” she says, crediting Caroline Knop and Dan Dry for the idea.

Dawn says the local community has stepped up to try to help restaurant workers, which is especially critical since people aren’t traveling as much. “People come to our city to eat here and to drink bourbon. Taking care of our local independent restaurant folk is very important. It’s a part of our community,” she says.

GIFTS TO OUR COMMUNITY: DECODE PROJECT A Path to Reading Literacy

When LaToya Whitlock realized that most behavioral problems happened because of lack of reading skills, she and some colleagues started Decode Project.

Reading is complicated. If we could look into the brains of early readers and see the processes that happen when deriving meaning from letters, we’d be astounded. Not every child has the same access or exposure to words and books from infancy, and not every child’s parents can afford tutoring or testing to see where reading deficits may be occurring and remedy them.

As a counselor in a small local school, LaToya Whitlock began to see students referred to her for behavioral issues that weren’t really behavioral issues. “Most of them weren’t able to read, and they would avoid the classroom,” she says. Out of desperation, LaToya began using her time with students to teach them structured literacy and saw quick, positive results. When the school wasn’t ready to commit to the literacy program, LaToya and some of her colleagues decided to go on their own and create Decode Project.

Decode Project uses explicitly trained and paid mentors to help ensure children at risk of functional illiteracy get the help they need so they can read at grade level. The nonprofit has partnered with the University of Louisville’s honors program to find motivated college students who will become mentors. The 12 hours of training they receive includes not only structured literacy but also anti-racist, anti-bias, and resiliency instruction.

Before the pandemic, literacy mentors had been going into schools and after-school programs including the St. Vincent de Paul Learning Center, but they’ve had to switch to all online instruction. “We’ve made a five-year transition in about five and a half months,” LaToya says. Decode Project now has an office in the Portland neighborhood where parents and caregivers can access the curriculum that literacy mentors use. While they won’t get the one-on-one instruction this way, LaToya and her team can walk them through the program and provide support.

“Our goal is to improve their reading score, but then also to have them feel like they belong in school and that they’re capable,” LaToya says. There is always a waitlist of students, so every grant or donation Decode Project receives helps the nonprofit ensure students who need to improve their reading get the help they deserve. “OUR GOAL IS TO IMPROVE THEIR READING SCORE, BUT THEN ALSO TO HAVE THEM FEEL LIKE THEY BELONG IN SCHOOL AND THAT THEY’RE CAPABLE.”

Photo by Melissa Donald

In a year like 2020, it can be a challenge to feel hopeful. The pandemic, job losses, online learning, and disruptions to everyone’s plans have made it difficult to keep our collective chins up. A light in the dimness, however, is Kosair Charities and the agencies it supports. Across Kentucky and in Southern Indiana, Kosair Charities provides financial resources to organizations and agencies that help children. “Since 1983, we’ve been a philanthropic organization that helps kids overcome obstacles and reach their full potential by supporting the agencies that help them. In any given year, we’ll support over 200 organizations

By Carrie Vittitoe | PROMOTION

Heather Stewart and Marc with Kentucky Harvest receive a $15,000 grant from Kosair Charities President Keith Inman to support a food rescue and delivery program.

whose sole focus is to help kids do better and get better,” Kosair Charities President Keith Inman says. A recent Kosair Charities grant to Hardin Memorial Health Foundation will help bring a fully equipped neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) to the area to help the tiniest of Kentucky’s residents.

What it means to be a “child in need” has expanded over the years. While originally Kosair Charities was focused only on medically fragile children, the definition of need has broadened. Children in need can be those who live with poverty, learning disabilities, or food insecurity. With the challenges that 2020 has brought, there are more children in need than ever before. The morale of Kosair Charities staff and their desire to help children in the community hasn’t wavered despite the year’s difficulties. “Our staff brings excitement no matter where the workplace is. Every morning when we get out of bed, we try to figure out how we can help more kids,” Keith says. As it works to help children, Kosair Charities strives to instill hope in the individuals and families it helps. “I hope they feel some enthusiasm that there’s somebody out there who is partnering with them,” Keith says. “Kosair Charities is the safety net organization for the children of our community.” To learn more about how you can help Kosair Kids this holiday season visit kosair.org/celebrate.

Sam Swope Centre Campus 982 Eastern Parkway Louisville, KY 40217 East Campus 9810 Bluegrass Parkway Louisville, KY 40229 Shelbyville Campus 512 Main Street Shelbyville, KY 40065

GIFTS TO OUR COMMUNITY: LOUISVILLE BALLET Transitioning on Their Toes

The Ballet Bound scholarship project has been able to provide one-year scholarships to 15 students, some of whom will receive ongoing scholarships.

Photos submitted 16 December 2020 / TodaysWomanNow.com The performing arts have been hit hard by the limits COVID-19 has put on public gatherings, but the Louisville Ballet has pivoted to utilize technology in myriad ways. Its season is now digital, but the dance films it is creating are not merely a recording of a performance. They are innovative and envision dance in a way that Louisville audiences haven’t seen locally. Kentucky! Vol I and The Nutcracker are two films that have been confirmed for the season.

Of course, performances are just one part of what Louisville Ballet does. Stacey Blakeman, director of community engagement, says the Louisville Ballet School moved to virtual classes in the spring but reopened to inperson classes in August with strict safety measures. With so many children doing online district education, “having this outlet for a place to go and something to do that is safe has been really important to a lot of our school families,” Stacey says. Families who don’t feel comfortable with in-person classes are still able to have virtual ones. One of the things that Louisville Ballet “HAVING THIS OUTLET is extremely proud of is its Ballet Bound FOR A PLACE TO GO AND scholarship program. While the Ballet has long been committed to improving SOMETHING TO DO THAT access to ballet, this year it has been able to provide one-year scholarships to 15 IS SAFE HAS BEEN REALLY students identified through its outreach IMPORTANT TO A LOT OF programs. At the end of each school year, between three and five Ballet Bound OUR SCHOOL FAMILIES.” students will be awarded a continuing scholarship provided they are meeting goals and mastering skills, and 15 new students will join the Ballet Bound program. By 2025, Louisville Ballet would like to have 12 students who will have graduated from high school and ballet school and be ready to begin a career with Louisville Ballet.

Finally, Louisville Ballet is continuing its outreach to students throughout the community, whether they are doing non-traditional instruction (NTI) or are in-person. Stacey and her colleagues have created electronic books and in-home videos that can be used by teachers or families at home. “We’re so grateful to be able to be busy,” she says. “The fact that we are surviving and still serving our community and producing work is an amazing thing.”

MAYA Collection was started by Karen Aroh 11 years ago but they just became an official nonprofit that helps refugee women learn skills, sell wares, and grow a support network. GIFTS TO OUR COMMUNITY: MAYA COLLECTION Creating a Better Life

MAYA Collection has been around since 2009, but it wasn’t until 2020 that it became an “official” nonprofit. In its early days, it was just an idea that Karen Aroh had to help Nepali women who had come to south Louisville as refugees. Many of the women’s husbands were struggling to find work given that the financial crisis of 2008 was still fresh. These women also simply wanted to make friends. “I said, ‘Let’s start a business.’ I had no idea what I was talking about,” she says. It took a long time to build the social enterprise.

In its earliest days, a core group of 15 women got together to knit and began creating items to sell. Karen says over time, the women who have become part of MAYA Collection have learned all kinds of other skills, from leatherwork to jewelry-making to the soft sales skills needed to sell items at craft fairs. Karen says one of the biggest benefits to the women in MAYA Collection is that it builds their self-confidence.

The nonprofit is primarily volunteer-run, although it did hire its first employee in early 2020. Its interns have been the creative force behind how MAYA Collection has adapted, given that COVID-19 canceled all craft fairs where the women might have sold their handcrafted goods.

While refugee women have been able to learn skills and sell wares, they have also benefited from the friendships they have made and the help they have received from the volunteers. “Our goal is to support and love each of our artisans holistically. This includes mentoring them and attending baby showers, birthday parties, helping with school issues, and helping find jobs for their husbands,” Karen says.

The majority of the women in MAYA Collection are Nepali, but women of any ethnicity are welcomed. Women from Africa, Iraq, and Myanmar have also become artisans. While the artisans haven’t been able to meet as often or in as large a group due to COVID-19, they continue to make their home at Hope Place on Southside Drive.

GIFTS TO OUR COMMUNITY: GREATNESS WITHIN Inspiring Greatness

Lavinia Hawkins, Ph.D. and her husband David co-wrote Greatness Within to inspire children and their families.

For some people, the place where they grow up imprints itself on them and always feels like home. Lavinia Hawkins, Ph.D., holds West Louisville close to her heart in everything she does. She was born and raised there by parents who took education seriously. That focus combined with a commitment to improving educational opportunities for West Louisville kids led to the creation of the book, Greatness Within, which Lavinia co-wrote with her husband, Daniel, the athletic director at West End School.

Lavinia and Daniel wrote the book in spring 2020 while quarantining. They thought about the important role that mentors had in both of their lives. “For both of us, mentoring and helping youth is so important. It’s how both of us were able to get to where we are now,” she says. “We wouldn’t be who we are without it.” Both of them recognized the severe impact the pandemic would have on children living in the West End because school, athletics, and community centers were shut down. They were looking to inspire children and help families.

Of course, no one imagined that we’d still be dealing with COVID-19 this many months later, which means the couple hasn’t been able to promote the book as they might otherwise have done. Lavinia would love to get the book into students’ hands at the middle and high school levels in urban schools. A personal goal for Lavinia, who recently completed her doctorate in curriculum and instruction, is to “improve education for youth from marginalized backgrounds.” She is concerned about not only the long-term impact of COVID-19 on these students but the impacts of social injustice that have come to a head this year.

Lavinia doesn’t have all the answers, but she knows that things have to improve in education. “There are too many kids, particularly from urban communities, who aren’t as successful as kids from other areas. I advocate for quality education, [but] I don’t know what that’s going to have to look like,” she says. “It needs to look like some success for each individual child.”

GIFTS TO OUR COMMUNITY: MY DOG EATS FIRST Pet Food Bank

Betheny Buster had long been a pet lover and owner of Paws Pet Care when a conversation in 2013 led her to establish My Dog Eats First. While eating at a restaurant in the Highlands, she and her son noticed a homeless man and bought him something to eat. The man ensured his dog took a bite before he did, an act that touched Betheny’s heart and led her to do research on homelessness in Louisville.

“Through that research I came in contact with The Forgotten Louisville. I started volunteering, threw some dog and cat food into the back of my car, and had no idea what I was going to encounter,” Betheny says. While she saw plenty of organizations taking care of homeless people, she recognized a need to care for pets. She saw animals with skin and ear conditions as a result of “living out” and knew the animals needed to get their vaccinations. Over time, she also saw a need for housed individuals who, due to financial hardships, couldn’t provide the food their animals needed.

My Dog Eats First has a pet food bank in West Louisville that, prior to COVID-19, operated twice

Betheny Buster started My Dog Eats First pet food bank to help homeless pet owners.

a month for the underserved. Due to the virus and the small size of the space, the organization has had to temporarily suspend its food bank operations. However, it is still meeting the needs of housed pet owners on an individual basis by responding to texts and phone calls.

Betheny and her team continue to help homeless pet owners by providing food and offering veterinary care to animals since they are outside and able to wear masks and social distance. “We are out meeting needs in some capacity every day,” she says. Recently, My Dog Eats First has tried to help deal with a parvo outbreak in a homeless camp.

“It’s really a beautiful thing to see a homeless individual care so much for a companion animal and that companion animal give that unconditional love and affection back to them,” she says. “Money or the lack thereof doesn’t dictate whether a person should have or feel love. That’s what a companion animal gives to a homeless individual.”

ABOVE: Hosparus Health staffers Susan Norsworthy, Sky Yeasayer and Sylvia Johnson (standing) sort through items donated during COVID-19 for our Inpatient Care Center.

AT RIGHT: Before the pandemic, Billy Zapp, one of Hosparus Health’s pet therapy volunteers, and his Alaskan Malamute companion, Major, enjoy visiting patients in nursing homes.

By Carrie Vittitoe | PROMOTION

The foundation of Hosparus Health is events postponed or canceled. “Our community is facing loss in so rooted in giving. “From our CEO on down, you’ll find that everyone is committed to taking care of families; it’s very mission-centered. We all approach this work with much gratitude to be able to serve,” Vice President of Development Tawanda Owsley says. many different ways, and we want to be there to support them,” Tawanda says. “The community collectively is grieving our sense of normalcy.” Hosparus Health wants to ensure it can help support individuals as we all continue to make our way through this public health crisis. Most people recognize Hosparus Health as the premiere provider of hospice services for those nearing the end of life regardless of the individual’s ability to pay. By taking on the role of caregivers and managing medications, symptoms, and appointments, Hosparus Health provides families and friends the gift of precious moments spent laughing, sharing stories, or just sitting quietly together. With Hosparus’ help, families In order to maintain these services and meet the community’s needs, Hosparus Health has launched its $24 million People of Compassion campaign. This campaign celebrates not only donors who commit to the campaign but the many caregivers who regularly go above and beyond the call of duty. If 2020’s COVID-19 pandemic has shown the community anything, it is that caregivers sacrifice in ways we’ve never fully appreciated before. have the ability to go back to being spouses, parents, and siblings of their “OUR COMMUNITY IS With these funds, Hosparus Health has many goals, including renovating its terminally ill loved ones. The end of life journey is a heavy weight for families; FACING LOSS IN SO MANY corporate headquarters to include a grief counseling space and expanding all of its Hosparus Health tries to minimize the stress as much as possible. Hosparus Health also provides palliative DIFFERENT WAYS, AND WE WANT TO BE THERE services, especially in light of the rapidly aging population. “We anticipate that about 10,000 people will turn 65 every day,” care for people of all ages who have advanced or chronic illnesses such as TO SUPPORT THEM.” Tawanda says. “Our services continue to grow and the need for care continues to advanced diabetes, chronic kidney grow.” The palliative and hospice needs of conditions, microcephaly, or Parkinson’s disease. “We are the the aging population will grow significantly over the next decade, only place in the region that takes care of fragile children through and Hosparus Health wants to ensure it can meet those needs our Kourageous Kids program,” Tawanda says. In 2019, Hosparus over the long-term. Health served 8,800 patients in 41 counties in Kentucky and With the aging population in mind, Hosparus Health is paying very Southern Indiana. close attention to some of the most common serious illnesses. “As In addition to these services, Hosparus Health also has a grief part of the campaign, we are looking at providing more support counseling center that provides support services not only to for seriously ill patients,” Tawanda says, specifically those that families who have utilized hospice services but to any person in have heart disease, lung disease, and dementia. While its services the community who has experienced loss. Loss has been a big part reach south to Bowling Green, Elizabethtown, and Campbellsville of everyone’s life this year. Some families have lost loved ones in Kentucky and up to Jasper, Indiana, in the north, Hosparus to cancer or other chronic diseases and not been able to be with Health is committed to reaching even more families who could them at the hospital due to pandemic precautions. Many families benefit from its compassionate care. “Everyone should have haven’t been able to gather for traditional funerals this year. Some access to comfort and experience the end of life with dignity. We families have lost loved ones to COVID-19. Everyone has lost the should be able to support families as they’re dealing with loved ability to live their lives in a way that we recognize as normal with ones with a serious illness,” she says.

3532 Ephraim McDowell Dr. | Louisville, KY 40205 (800) 264-0521 | HosparusHealth.org

GIFTS TO OUR COMMUNITY: SOS INTERNATIONAL Moving Resources

Denise Sears works to move unused medical supplies to where they are needed as part of SOS International.

Since 1993, SOS International has been collecting, sorting, and distributing extra medical supplies from hospitals to developing countries to help doctors and nurses provide care. To walk through SOS’ warehouse is to see 12-foot-tall pallets of supplies that will go thousands of miles away, to anywhere from Zimbabwe to Mauritania to Nigeria. Half a million pounds of medical supplies are kept out of landfills each year through the work that SOS does.

SOS collects surplus medical supplies from over 100 hospitals in Kentucky and surrounding states. Doctors who retire often donate unused supplies and even office equipment to SOS, which SOS then uses to help clinics ramp up. SOS is one of the few accredited organizations that can test, recover, and distribute medical equipment and has a team of biomedical engineers that check each piece that comes through. While expired medical supplies cannot be used to provide health care, these supplies can be used by local high school and nursing school students as they learn the field. With JCPS doing non-traditional instruction (NTI) this fall during the pandemic, SOS has supplied kits for students so they can have hands-on experiences even when they aren’t in the classroom.

President and CEO Denise Sears has a personal mission to help keep individuals healthy: her daughter, Lauren, entered the hospital for a minor issue but contracted MRSA and died in 2012. “She was my reason for getting up and breathing,” Denise says. “I was very passionate about preventing other parents from losing a child.”

While SOS has long acted globally, it became apparent in recent years — and especially during COVID-19 — that SOS had the ability to act locally. When personal protective equipment (PPE) was difficult to find in the spring of 2020, SOS was able to distribute much-needed supplies to local hospitals, fire and police departments, and senior living communities. SOS donated over a million dollars worth of product early on during the pandemic. “When we see an opportunity to enhance health, even if it’s slightly outside the immediate scope of what we do, I’m going to find the resources to make it happen,” Denise says.

GIFTS TO OUR COMMUNITY: RACING LOUISVILLE FC A Woman’s League of Our Own

The women’s soccer team Racing Louisville FC will start playing in 2021 at the Lynn Family Stadium.

A women’s soccer league was always part of the strategic vision for Louisville City FC, but it wasn’t until fall 2019 that the synergy was there to support it. The men’s league and fan base had grown, and Lynn Family Stadium had been built. “We knew having a women’s team would be a logical step,” says Louisville City FC President Brad Estes. The organization has always wanted to have people in the community playing soccer in as many ways as possible.

While some businesses have cut back or closed as a result of COVID-19, Louisville City FC has moved ahead with the creation of Racing Louisville FC, a National Women’s Soccer League expansion team, as well as the training grounds project, a $15 million investment in a 25-acre site on River Road that includes four artificial turf fields for youth soccer and bermuda grass fields for the men’s and women’s teams. This year has also seen the rollout of the youth program, which includes a Louisville City Academy and a Racing Louisville Academy. There are 44 teams total, 22 for boys and 22 for girls, for children ages 7-19. The organization has also been focused on providing scholarships to disadvantaged students who want to play soccer but don’t have funds or easy access. “We’ve committed $150,000 in scholarships,” Brad says. “If you want to play for us, we’ll make it happen.”

In terms of future goals, being competitive for league championships and winning are critical, but so is empowering women and minorities. “We’re making strides hopefully from a social justice perspective. We want to empower women and people of color. That’s an important part of what we’re doing as we try to improve our community,” Brad says.

Photo by Melissa Donald

Arenovation is a gift that individuals, couples, or families give to themselves; it’s a gift that will last for years, add value to the home, and bring style and freshness to each day. Owner Chase Vincent and his staff give their clients craftsmanship, attention to detail and regular communication when Kitchen Tune-Up is hired to oversee that renovation. “We not only do what we say, but we also stay in communication with customers each step of the way and always have their best interests in mind,” he says. Chase and his wife, Elizabeth, purchased the Kitchen Tune-Up franchise in the

By Carrie Vittitoe | PROMOTION

L to R: Chase, Owner; Ryan, Cabinet Technician; Terral, Cabinet Technician; Corey, Director of Operations; and Janet, Design Consultant.

summer of 2019 and have worked to establish it as a company that can be trusted. They know that clients value the money they invest in a renovation project as well as time, which is why Kitchen Tune-Up strives to get jobs done as quickly as possible and with the greatest attention to detail and excellence. “All of the employees treat the kitchen as ‘their kitchen.’ This is not just a job; [I tell them] ‘this is your kitchen so do it the way you’d want it to be done,’” he says. A tightly-knit staff who respects and encourages each other is key to ensuring clients receive the highest quality experience. “We are a small business, and all employees are treated much like family,” Chase says. Providing clients with high-quality and affordable renovations is important to Kitchen Tune-Up, but so is giving back to the community. Elizabeth is a speech therapist and has many patients who are part of the Down Syndrome of Louisville family. In August of 2020, “we had the opportunity to provide a brand new kitchenette for Down Syndrome of Louisville for their new adult room as well as new cabinets in their volunteer room,” Chase says. To maintain the nonprofit’s daily operations without disruption, Chase and his staff came in on a Saturday to complete the work, which added tons of much-needed storage space that was greatly appreciated by Down Syndrome of Louisville staff and their community members.

Design Center Open by Appointment 10900 Plantside Drive, Suite C | Louisville, KY 40299 (502) 836-3322 | KitchenTuneUp.com/Louisville-Ky-East

GIFTS TO OUR COMMUNITY: LA CASITA CENTER Supporting the Latinx Community

La Casita Center works with local businesses to provide essential resources for the Latinx community.

What services does La Casita Center provide? The short answer is: everything. “You name it, we do it,” says Executive Director Karina Barillas. With a holistic approach to caring for members of the Latinx community, those services can mean providing meals and food to individuals who have been diagnosed with COVID-19 or helping a mother advocate for her special needs child through translation at a telehealth appointment. The organization also hosts a diaper bank, a food pantry, and a give-and-take closet. La Casita’s 19 staff members speak four different languages — English, Spanish, and two indigenous Guatemalan languages, Mam and K’iche. Last year alone, La Casita provided 46,000 services to nearly 5,000 individuals.

The organization, which began in 2000 but didn’t become an official nonprofit until 2005, has developed numerous partnerships in Louisville for the benefit of the Latinx community. La Casita has worked in conjunction with JCPS to try to help young Latinx children prepare for school; its video series on Facebook, La Escualita, is geared toward children ages three to five to help them be ready for kindergarten. La Casita is also working to help parents manage non-traditional instruction (NTI) during the pandemic. “The digital divide is real,” Karina says. Some Latinx parents new to the United States do not speak or write Spanish, which makes helping their children learn English and complete online school a Herculean task.

While La Casita strives to support any person in need, it has a special focus on supporting women in the community, whether they are experiencing racial injustice, poverty, homophobia, or abuse. “I would like all of us to recognize that when women are in solidarity with each other, the community will be stronger,” she says.

By Barbara Myerson Katz Photo Submitted PROMOTION

President and CEO Nazareth Homes

For Mary Haynes, the challenges and rewards of heading a long-term care facility have come together in a poignant way during the COVID-19 pandemic. As president and CEO of Louisville’s Nazareth Home, she has had to oversee keeping resident elders on two Louisville campuses physically distant from their loved ones and the world in general, while maintaining virtual connections. At the same time, Mary says, she has basked in the grace with which residents are approaching the crisis.

“They’ve given me a lot of advice,” she says. “These are people who have lived through famines, world wars, and depressions, so they are able to keep things in perspective in a wonderful way that takes some of the urgency out of today’s world. And that’s a beautiful thing to experience.”

Mary received a nursing degree from Spalding University and worked in mental health at what is now Peace Hospital, rising to become its Vice President for Nursing. Other stints in mental health nursing followed, and she helped establish Kentucky’s first free-standing care center for Alzheimer’s patients in Owensboro. After directing long-term care at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, Mary returned to Louisville and Nazareth Home 18 years ago. Nazareth Home, like the first incarnations of Spalding and Peace Hospital, was founded by the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth. “Partnerships are part of all health care organizations,” she says, “but particularly in long-term care, community partnerships are key.” Mary says people are the highlights of her job – elder residents who share their life experiences, family members with whom she and her staff maintain full, open communication even in these challenging times, and her team of caregivers. “I’m very proud to represent a workforce that is predominantly hardworking women who have a lot of challenges and get up every day to make somebody else’s day,” she says. While it’s not always easy to advocate for long-term care from a public policy standpoint, Mary says, she helps others to recognize that it’s life-affirming. “Long-term care is really about the elders and their adult children,” Mary notes, “and how all of that comes together in a beautiful, sacred way.”

HIGHLANDS | 2000 Newburg Rd | Louisville, KY | 502.459.9681 CLIFTON | 2120 Payne St | Louisville, KY | 502.895.9425 nazhome.org

GIFTS TO OUR COMMUNITY: SURVIVORS’ CORNER Turning Trauma Into Purpose

Donna Pollard created Survivors’ Corner in 2017 after beginning to speak of her own experience as a person who was abused as a child and then became a child bride. “Everything I’d gone through was preparing me to be able to give back to the community and reframe trauma into purpose, so that other people would never have to experience that level of abuse through legal loopholes,” she says.

Initially, she facilitated support meetings, which then led to an affiliation with the University of Louisville’s Kent School of Social Work that helped her put together additional support groups and workshops. “It took off from there,” she says. Survivors’ Corner continues to build partnerships with other agencies and organizations. “We’re part of the Community Advisory to the Trauma Resilient Community grant that the city was awarded,” she says.

Survivors’ Corner helps individuals who have experienced any and all kinds of trauma. Many people who attend support groups and workshops are adult survivors of child abuse who have then experienced trauma from human trafficking or sexual assault. Peer mentorship opportunities are

Survivor’s Corner helps anyone who has experienced any form of trauma. Donna Pollard started this organization after she herself began sharing her personal experiences.

critical for trauma survivors as they work through their own recovery. “A big part of the healing journey and self accountability is being able to become a peer mentor and leader to others,” she says. “We help survivors change the narrative around what a victim looks like.”

In addition to workshops, yoga classes, and support groups, Survivors’ Corner is focused on legislation both in the state and across the nation. Some legislation is aimed at ending child marriage, while other work is aimed at the statutes of limitations for child sexual abuse cases.

One of Donna’s goals is to strengthen the approaches to young people who have been abused or are in juvenile detention. “Our vision is to have all professions that are handling these cases speaking the same trauma-informed language,” she says. “We want to minimize additional harm to the child once they are in the system.” As an individual who has not only survived childhood trauma but thrived beyond it, she knows the importance of giving survivors an opportunity to heal with the support of others who have gone through similar experiences.

GIFTS TO OUR COMMUNITY: LOUISVILLE GROWS Making Louisville Green

Louisville Grows is looking to expand the tree canopy to healthy levels by planting 1000 trees each year.

While planting 1,000 trees each year in south and west Jefferson County sounds like a lot of work (and is), it is just a drop in the bucket of what Louisville needs for its tree canopy and community to be healthy. According to Lisa Dettlinger, program director at Louisville Grows, Louisville loses around 50,000 trees from its canopy each year, which means there is a constant need to replace and restore what has been lost. “You want a tree canopy of about 40-50 percent. Most of the neighborhoods we work in, the tree canopy on the average is 16-19 percent,” Lisa says.

Louisville Grows is a unique nonprofit in that it plants trees in residential areas to make an immediate impact on the lives of people who live at the residence. A canopy really makes a difference in terms of energy costs since a shaded house is a cooler house in the heat of summer. Trees on residential lots filter the air of pollutants and slow down water going into storm drains. The trees that Louisville Grows plants are native species that can weigh between 50-250 pounds; they are not dinky little saplings. “When you are planting trees the size we do, to buy a tree at the nursery and have it planted, we’re talking on average $500. When you are living at the poverty level in an underserved neighborhood, you’re not ever going to think about putting that into a tree,” she says. “That is our gift to the community; we are trying our best to restore the urban tree canopy to improve the quality of lives for these residents.”

In addition to trees, Louisville Grows also helps develop community gardens. Its urban agriculture program sells seeds and plant starts each year to local gardeners as a fundraiser, with the money being used for community garden project grants. Despite 2020 impacting the number of volunteers who could help get seeds and starts ready, Lisa and her colleagues sold 27,000 plants through a curbside service. “We had our largest sale ever this year and made over $32,000,” she says.

Director, Live a Dream

Serena Haming says she’s an out-of-the-box thinker. As a Presentation Academy student, she studied for five months in Australia. As a business marketing major at the University of Louisville, she helped start the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority. “I feel like I’ve always been surrounded by a lot of strong women that have pushed me to try something new,” she says. So in the fall of her college senior year as she wrapped up an internship at the Trilogy Foundation, the nonprofit arm of Trilogy Health Services, which runs senior living and longterm care facilities in four states, she told Chief Engagement and Innovations Officer Todd Schmiedeler that her dream job was to work, not with seniors, but with Make-a-Wish, the international foundation that grants the wishes of critically ill children. Todd responded with a challenge: Trilogy had a similar program for seniors — Live a Dream (LiveADream.org) — that had been fledgling. Would Serena take a crack at reviving Live a Dream, helping seniors fulfill bucket list wishes? She signed on, and one of her first challenges was to arrange a hot air balloon ride for a woman named Donna, who was confined to a wheelchair — no easy task. But Serena found a pilot with an accessible basket, worked around Donna’s dialysis appointments, unpredictable late fall weather, and Donna’s husband, whose fear of heights almost prevented him from accompanying her. And at the crack of dawn on a chilly morning, Donna finally got to soar above the Indiana treetops. When she landed, Serena recalls, Donna cried with joy and said she felt at peace, no longer afraid. Donna passed away a few weeks later, and, Serena says, she realized, “I have to do this forever. I don’t know what this job entails, but this has to be repeated.” Now Serena has fulfilled wishes big and small — honor flights of World War II veterans to Washington, DC, a University of Kentucky basketball practice for a man who had played for the team more than 70 years ago, ziplining adventures, and a KISS concert for a longtime fan that included meeting the band. COVID-19 has again allowed Serena to use her out of the box thinking to create a virtual choir and pen pal programs. Seniors learn their wishes are to be fulfilled in “dream reveals.” “That moment for me is pure joy,” Serena says. “This older generation is super humble. They’re never really expecting something to be for them. They’ve just given back their whole lives.”

With Trilogy’s support, Serena is halfway toward receiving an MBA from Purdue Global. Making such an impact on seniors’ lives, Serena wants to continue to grow Live a Dream — with a national focus — out of the box, and beyond.

GIFTS TO OUR COMMUNITY: THE MUSTARD SEED Recycling Hope

Ginny Weigleb knew about thrift stores so she started one that helps support SOAR, a nonprofit for survivors of childhood abuse.

When an individual has been helped by an organization, the desire to give back is often overwhelming. For Ginny Weigleb, the help she received from Survivors of Abuse Restored (SOAR), which supports women survivors of childhood sexual abuse, led her to create The Mustard Seed, a nonprofit thrift store with two locations in Southern Indiana: Floyds Knobs and Sellersburg.

Ginny had nearly 20 years experience in the thrift industry, so she brought a knowledge base and skillset to the venture, but she says the people who supported her and joined her mission, which is in its fifth year, were critical to its success. “God just sent the exact right people at the exact right time to get this thing off the ground,” she says.

In addition to providing funds for SOAR, Mustard Seed provides a safe space for survivors. “We don’t have services that are in-house; we don’t provide counseling, but we have to train [staff on] how to talk to a survivor and provide printed material,” she says. Ginny and her staff and volunteers try to provide individuals who have suffered abuse the resources they need to achieve healing. Women who have experienced childhood sexual abuse have paid a huge price, and the costs of treatment for them to deal with their trauma can be a prohibitive barrier to healing.

When it comes to the future, Ginny says she is open to utilizing the spaces where the current shops are now to further support survivors. “The building we just moved over to in Floyds Knobs will have an ability to have an event space,” she says. She envisions using the space to further educate individuals and small groups about sexual abuse and the importance of changing the narrative around what it means to be a victim and soar beyond that.