‘Why I Give’

Plus...

Real People. Real Challenges. Real Solutions. www.voaky.org

InspireVolunteers of America of Kentucky, Inc.

Summer/Fall 2014

Veterans services in the spotlight

Sending students to the classroom with

confidence

Successat SchoolSuccessat School

what we need most:• Tax-deductiblecontributionsintheattachedpostage-paidenvelopeoronline

atwww.voaky.org(select “Back to School” on the “Direct my gift” drop down menu)

• Giftcardsforuniformsandschoolsuppliesatbudget-friendlystores

you can also help by:• Donatingnewuniformclothinginallsizes,backpacks,andschoolsupplies

• OrganizingaBacktoSchoolcollectionatyourplaceofbusinessorworship

Back to school

p u r s u i n g a n e d u c at i o n — a n d a d r e a m .Made possible with help from Volunteers of America.

p u r s u i n g a n e d u c at i o n — a n d a d r e a m .

“I consider Volunteers of America a valued partner in our community’s efforts to address the growing number of students experiencing homelessness. Please join me in supporting the Back to School campaign and give kids in need the chance to succeed in the classroom and in life.”

Donna M. Hargens, Ed.D.Superintendent, Jefferson

County Public Schools

Made possible with help from Volunteers of America.

Visit www.voaky.org/BTS for a list of donation drop-off locations, dates, and times.Contact Tandee Ogburn at TandeeO@voaky.org or (502) 636-4638 for more information.

ShamekaturnedtoVolunteersofAmericawhensheandherchildren—ShanairaandShyquan—didn’thaveahometocall theirown.Wehelpedthewhole familyseteducationalandcareergoals.ShamekawillsooncompleteaMasterofEducationwithafocusonmentalhealth,ShanairaisstudyingFrenchincollegewithplanstobecomeaninterpreter,andShyquanisahighschoolsophomore.Yourgiftenablesthisincrediblesuccesswiththeireducationalgoalsandinlife.

YoursupportcanmakeadifferenceforfamilieslikeShamekaandherchildren.OurBacktoSchoolcampaignhelpsusprovidebackpacks,uniforms,schoolsupplies,pluscomprehensiveservicestohelpstudentssucceed,including:• Learningassessmentsconductedbytrainededucationalprofessionals• One-on-onetutoringandhomeworkhelpinourStudyBuddyRoom• Learningresourcesincludingcomputers,books,games,andeducationaltoys• Healthymealspreparedbyourtrainedculinaryspecialist• Customized,ongoingcasemanagementtohelpfamiliesachievestabilityandself-sufficiency

4 Inspire

Dear Friend,

We are excited to share the news that our Family Emergency Shelter is poised to become the only provider of emergency shelter services and case management for Louisville’s homeless veterans and their family members.

Louisville’s Coalition for the Homeless — the coordinating agency for the Continuum of Care system that serves the city’s homeless individuals and families — now refers veteran families almost exclusively to our shelter, and with new funding sources, the shelter will become the primary destination for homeless veterans and their families.

Nearly $100,000 in funding — including a $60,000 grant from The Home Depot Foundation, a $25,000 anonymous gift, and $12,600 from the UPS Foundation — will allow us to renovate a wing of the shelter for veteran family transitional housing and provide dedicated case management to these families.

We are honored to fulfill this important role in our community!

Sincerely,

Lisa DeJaco, Board Chair

Jane W. Burks, President and CEO

Volunteers of Americ a of Kentuck y, Inc. 5

Last winter, WDRB-TV — the Fox affiliate in Louisville — examined the growing number of students in Jefferson County Public Schools experiencing homelessness. WDRB and reporter Valerie Chinn introduced the Louisville community to Dennis, a fifth-grader who was living at our Family Emergency Shelter.

Dennis’s story resonated with viewers and motivated many to reach out in support. He will begin middle school this fall and is already thinking about college. He’d like to be an architect someday.

Community support is helping Dennis and kids like him overcome obstacles to success in school and in life. What we do together as a compassionate community is making a difference!

On the cover

6 Inspire

Partnering groups formVeterans Community Alliance of Louisville

Seven young professionals — as part of the Leadership Louisville Center’s Yum! IGNITES Challenge — have joined with Volunteers of

America, Seven Counties Services, and other partners to launch the Veterans

Community Alliance of Louisville (VCAL).

The IGNITE team spent six months researching community need for improved coordination

of veterans services in the areas of benefits, primary and behavioral

health care, employment, education, legal services, and housing.

In response, the Veterans Community Alliance of Louisville aims to ensure seamless services.

“VCAL creates a forum for communication across organizational lines, an opportunity for us to develop solutions to fill gaps in services, and a unified voice to advocate for veterans in our community,” said Karmen Martin of LG&E and KU Energy, a member of the IGNITE team.

“As a community, we don’t want any veteranto fall through the cracks, whether it’s mental health services, healthcare, help finding a solid job and career, or help through the legal system,” Mayor Greg Fischer said at the VCAL launch. “The focus of VCAL in connecting the dots and making sure our collective response to veterans is strong and coordinated, is exactly what is needed.”

To learn more visit www.vcalouisville.org.

Vet

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Al l i a n c e o f L o u i s

v i l le

At a news conference to announce the launch, the IGNITE team was joined by community leaders. Left to right:Johnathan Woodall, Karmen Martin, Mayor Greg Fischer, Jane Burks, Judge David Holton, Jennifer Hancock,

Christina Julian, Brad Spencer, Meghan Mando, Adam Keal, Anesha Blakey, and John Launius.

Volunteers of Americ a of Kentuck y, Inc. 7

ChooseWell, a Louisville-based organization dedicated to creating more inclusive and transparent health care systems, has introduced a model “Intentional Health Community” serving women and their children in our Women’s Addiction Recovery Services.

Using their combined experience in the health care industry and their knowledge of healthy lifestyle choices, ChooseWell founding partners Stephanie Barnett and Kim Maddox — both members of our Positive Change Society — along with Leslie Sepanek, Program Coordinator with ChooseWell, and more than a dozen other volunteers meet regularly with clients for cooking demonstrations, field trips, and mentoring.

Clients are seeing for themselves the healing and health benefits of mindfulness meditation, spiritual reflections, yoga, and low-impact exercise. They have learned to prepare

dishes using fresh, in-season produce and herbs — rather than salt — from gardens on the campus.

ChooseWell has arranged for massage therapists, herbalists, holistic practitioners, doulas, and other parenting/childbirth resources to offer their services at no charge to our clients. They also partnered with the New Roots Shawnee Fresh Stop to provide the moms with access to affordable, local food, and weekly excursions have been championed by Mama 2 Mama.

Our goal is to help women thrive in recovery and give birth to healthy, drug-free babies. In the long term, the lifestyle changes will help clients decrease their reliance on prescription medications and emergency room visits for themselves and their children. Together we are making a meaningful difference.

Left: ChooseWell founding partner Kim Maddox (right) demonstrates a recipe for chicken and vegetable soup. Right: “We’ve fallen in love with Volunteers of America and these women,” says ChooseWell founding partner Stephanie Barnett. “We hope they’ll stay involved after they graduate and become mentors and peer leaders.”

New moms and moms-to-be learnhealth benefits from ChooseWell

8 Inspire8 Inspire

Many Reasons, and Many Ways to Give

Judie Parks — a volunteer, ambassador, and member of our Positive Change Society — represented us in the sale of one of our properties and generously donated her commission to Volunteers of America. We are so grateful for her latest gift and for all she does for us – including hosting an annual holiday party at her home with family and friends to collect gifts and support for our Women’s Addiction Recovery Services. Judie’s good works and support through Berkshire Hathaway Parks & Weisberg are perfect examples of ways a professional can use his or her business to galvanize community service.

Mayor’s Week of Service garners big support

This year’s Give a Day – Mayor’s Week of Service in Louisville was a major benefit for our programs and the people we serve. More than 600 service hours were contributed by 176 volunteers, along with $6,500 in in-kind contributions. They helped us in a variety of ways – including serving meals and painting at our Family Emergency Shelter, organizing a Bingo Night for our senior housing residents, and completing a huge spring planting project at our Shelby Street Clinical Campus. We thank the numerous participating groups, which included our Board of Directors, Indian Professional Council, Dominant Divas Social Club, Kentucky Department of Corrections, Greater New Beginnings Church, Mayor Greg Fischer’s Innovation Team, Passport Health Plan, PMR Companies, Texas Roadhouse, and UPS.

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Left to right: Volunteers of America board members Paula Purifoy, Chef Ann Stainback, Ken Wilson, Ken Middleton, Brad Smith, and George McMinn.

Volunteers of Americ a of Kentuck y, Inc. 9

Jewish Community Center supports Family Emergency Shelter

CenterStage at the Jewish Community Center in Louisville helped us celebrate the 30th anniversary of our Family Emergency Shelter by hosting a special sneak preview of their production of The Sound of Music. The families we serve and graduates of our programs attended as special guests, along with supporters and staff members. CenterStage supports a different charitable organization during each of its productions and Lenae Price, CenterStage’s Development and Outreach Manager, said this one was a natural partnership. “The Von Trapps were a displaced family and Volunteers of America serves displaced families. We are thrilled to help educate our audience on the wonderful services Volunteers of America provides to our community.” Ticket sales and a “pass the hat” effort throughout the show’s two-week run raised more than $1,200 to support the shelter. We thank the CenterStage cast, crew, and supporters for honoring the shelter in this meaningful way!

Job fairs in Knoxville target veterans

Our East Tennessee Veterans Services staff is now offering a series of job fairs for area veterans and the general public. Program staff are present to answer questions, enroll clients in our program, and make referrals to other resources. Services offered for veterans include job training and placement assistance, life skills support services, case management, and other essential services for veterans who are homeless or at risk of homelessness in more than 20 counties in East Tennessee. More than 100 employees and 350 people have attended the fairs held during the first half of 2014, which have helped 45 veterans gain employment.

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10 Inspire

West Tennessee Advisory Council formed

Phil Conner, a long-time supporter of our Developmental Disability Services in Memphis, is part of our newly-formed West Tennessee Advisory Council. Like our councils in Middle Tennessee and the Bluegrass region, the group — co-chaired by Conner and community supporter Pat Edmiston — helps us grow community awareness and support and better serve our clients. Both Conner and Edmiston are also members of the Positive Change Society, our multi-year giving circle.

Conner, who has been engaged with Volunteers of America since 2004, owns three of our Supportive Living Homes and offers affordable rents at the homes. Conner — a self-employed agriculturist, real estate agent, and Army veteran — has spent many hours donating his time to modify the homes in West Tennessee to make them more accessible for our clients. In addition, Conner has partnered with Kim Weaver, Senior Vice President of Renasant Bank, to adopt two of the homes in Memphis. Together, Conner, Weaver, and the associates of the local Renasant Bank branches visit our clients on holidays, birthdays, and other special occasions. Weaver has also recently joined the West Tennessee Advisory Council.

“Volunteers of America makes life better for many people through their services,” Conner says. “My wife, Jane, andI feel blessed that we have the opportunity to be a part of the mission.”

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One hour can change a life

Join us for an upcoming Real³ Journey, a one-hour interactive tour that demonstrates how we help real people facing real challenges to find real and lasting solutions. Real³ Journeys take place at our Family Emergency Shelter at 1321 S. Preston Street, Louisville 40208 (enter on Ormsby Avenue), unless otherwise noted.

Visit www.voaky.org/Real3Journey for upcoming dates and times.

Our Family Emergency Shelter is funded in part by:

Katrina Henderson, Phil Conner, Cheryl Baker, Rita Finnie, and Jane Burks.

Volunteers of Americ a of Kentuck y, Inc. 11

Volunteers of America serving Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia, Southern Indiana, and Southern Ohio is a fully accreditednot-for-profit business and meets or exceeds all 20 of the Better Business Bureau’s Standards for Charity Accountability.

Board of DirectorsPresident and CEO, Jane W. BurksChair, Lisa DeJaco, Wyatt Tarrant & Combs, LLC Vice Chair, Carl Williams, Jefferson County Public SchoolsTreasurer, Karen Dunaway, CPA, PLLCSecretary, Sharon Johnson, LG&E and KUMember at Large, George McMinn, Messer ConstructionTyson Adams, Stites & Harbison, PLLCSandra Chambers, Jefferson Community and Technical CollegeChris Conliffe, Conliffe & Hickey InsuranceAl Cornish, Norton HealthcarePatricia Cummings, Consultant David Fennell, Retired, PNC BankBarbara Ford, Barbara J. Ford, LLCKeeta Fox, Papa John’s International, Inc.Steve Magre, Magre OutsourceKen Middleton, Middleton Consulting, LLCMark Mitchen, UPSDave Neumann, ConsultantDickie Oliver, Yum! BrandsPaula Purifoy, Metropolitan Sewer DistrictCindy Read, KentuckianaWorksL. Srinivasan, General ElectricChris Ward, Deming, Malone, Livesay & OstroffMelanie Warren, PNC Wealth ManagementKen Wilson, Brown-Forman Wines USA

Board CounselMichael Lannon, Attorney at Law and CPA, Weber & Rose, PSC

President’s Advisory CouncilPamela E. Barry, PNC Wealth Management J. David Flanery, Retired, Papa John’s International, Inc.Daniel Hall, University of LouisvilleRichard Hallman, UPS AirlinesDonald Kelly, Wyatt Tarrant & Combs, LLCJack D. Sweeney, PNC Bank

Senior StaffJane W. Burks, President and CEO

President Elect, Jennifer HancockBay Baltes, Senior Vice President of Human Resources

Rita Finnie, Vice President of Southern Developmental Disabilities Services

Tiffany Cole Hall, Vice President of Northern Developmental Disabilities Services

Tom George, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Jonathan Kuehl, Senior Director of Operations Support and Oversight

Jennifer McMinn, Vice President of Clinical and Regional Services

Editorial/creative Jennifer Recktenwald, Senior Director of Communications

Claire Sheehan, Creative Services Manager

Your old carcan jump-start a new life for someone in need.

Volunteers of America of Kentucky’s Auto Donation Program accepts donations of cars, vans, trucks, boats, motor homes, and motorcycles. The vehicles are sold at online public auctions through Copart — a national auto auction broker — and the revenues are used to support our programs and services.

It’s easy to do. Skip the hassle of selling your vehicle. Pickup is fast and free. Just call (502) 636-0771 in the Metro Louisville area or 1-800-407-2600 from any other location, or use the online form at www.voaky.org/auto.

Donations are tax deductible.

Proceeds from your vehicle donation stay local — helping us do more to

improve lives right in your community.

We can tow a vehicle anywherein the country!

www.voaky.org

570 S. 4th St., Suite 100 | Louisville, KY 40202-2504

Nonprofit Org.US Postage

PAIDPermit 961

Louisville, KY

If not you, then who?

Artwork courtesy of local artist and Positive Change Society member Micki Thomas

Please join us at our Power of 1 Breakfast fundraising event and learn how you can make a difference for the people who need us the most in our community.

Tuesday, September 30, 2014Networking - 8 a.m.Breakfast and Program - 8:30-9:30 a.m.

Louisville Marriott DowntownMarriott Ballroom

280WestJeffersonStreetLouisville,Kentucky40202

RSVP to Robyn Przybylek at502.636.4660 or RobynP@voaky.org