Community Foundation of South Central Kentucky

The 2018 Women’s Fund Impact Grant will construct five affordable townhouses for low income families. These homes will be built to be 25-30% more efficient than a standard code constructed home. Volunteers and the future homeowners work side by side to construct these homes.

Homebuyers make an affordable (0% interest) mortgage payment, which helps to fund future homes. Each mortgage payment repaid with go back into our community building more affordable homes for low income families. With the development of Durbin Estates, Habitat is increasing property value in a very depressed area of Bowling Green which will in turn add over $70,000 back to the tax base for that area. Building a community where families will find stability.

The duration of this impact will be life long. We know that children of homeowners are 116% more likely to graduate from college compared with children in families who do not own their homes. We know that the affordable mortgage offers mothers the opportunity to not have to work multiple jobs to keep their family in shelter, greatly increasing the time they invest in themselves and their family. This opportunity presents these families with the opportunity to change the financial and educational trajectory of their family’s life.

A sweet, blonde-haired boy’s words will never be forgotten by his dad: when Mason Goodnight hugged Jef after Jef didn’t win the Impact Grant in 2016 Mason said, “You’ll win next year, Dad.” Mason was right.

When Jef Goodnight, Chief Professional Officer of The Boys and Girls Club of Franklin-Simpson, and his team presented at the Annual Dinner in 2016, their passion to make a positive impact for the kids at the Club was very evident.

In fact, they highlighted that The Boys & Girls Club serves an average of 259 kids daily with a total of 613 kids coming at least once a week. Not only do they provide a safe environment for these children after school, but the Club also provides a tutoring program, hands-on gardening experience, and nourishing meals from local churches three days a week. One of the crucial programs they specifically offer teens is the Bridge Academy, which partners with local community members to help teens with resume building, applying for scholarships, mock interviewing, and much more.

Jef and his team presented again in 2017; this time, however, their passion was much more personal: the Club’s goal became not only to add a new teen center but also to carry on the legacy of Goodnight’s son. Mason passed away suddenly the previous April after contracting meningitis. Mason is greatly missed, but his legacy will continue through The Mason Goodnight Teen Center.

The Women’s Fund of South Central Kentucky is honored to be a part of this legacy, and we cannot wait to hear about all of the positive ways the teens in Franklin-Simpson will be impacted.

for more info about The Boys and Girls Club of Franklin-Simpson >>

The Pathway of Hope program was also supported through this grant to provide service to families with a desire to break the cycle of crisis and enable a path out of intergenerational poverty.  Pathway of Hope will employ a two-generation strategy, focusing on both the adults and the children in these vulnerable families.  Through this program families and children will experience increased housing stability, increased life-skills capabilities such as household budgeting, increased school stability for children, and the greater capacity to avoid another housing crisis.  

The Salvation Army’s Pathway of Hope has an opportunity to make a lasting impact on vulnerable families.  A path out of intergenerational poverty is desperately needed for families here in Bowling Green. Together we can act to break the cycle of repeated crisis that traps so many of these families.

for more info about The Salvation Army of Bowling Green >>

August 3, 2015 brought about a wonderful change for Family Enrichment Center. The dream of having all of our services on one campus came true with the opening of our new Wee Care Childcare Center. This new building allows us to expand services to offer care to 49 children and increase our “free” respite services to parents in the community. This goal from our long range plan could have never been realized without the help of the Women’s Fund of South Central Kentucky. Financial support from the grant allowed us to renovate an old, abandoned building and make it a spectacular place to care for little ones and make sure they are prepared to enter school. Thanks to the Women’s Fund, the benefits of this project will be realized on and on, long past 2015. Who knew that a group of concerned women, who envision a community where women and children are safe and have the services they need to allow them to be the best they can be, could make such big changes in such a short amount of time? Family Enrichment Center is grateful that the Women’s Fund cares about the parents and children we serve.

—Lynn Hulsey | Family Enrichment Center

for more info about Wee Care Childcare Center>>