LOUISVILLE, KY. – In its centennial anniversary year, Goodwill Industries of Kentucky is taking unprecedented strides to create pathways out of poverty for Kentuckians in need and will use the month of November to celebrate contributions shoppers, donors and supporters have made to make its mission as relevant as ever.
The nonprofit proudly celebrates Donor Appreciation Month, a time to recognize and thank supporters who have made financial contributions, donations to one of its stores and/or offered their time and expertise all to undergird Goodwill’s mission.
The 100-year-old organization is commonly known for its thrift stores – but it’s so much more than that. It uses nearly 90 cents of every dollar generated at its stores and donation centers to fund its career services that affect more than 20,000 individuals each year. Anyone who has donated items at its stores, rounded up at its registers during a purchase or donated monetarily has played a part in reducing poverty in the commonwealth.
That mission to reduce poverty has never been more relevant. The nonprofit is expected to move into its new headquarters and career-service location in West Louisville – the Norton Healthcare Goodwill Opportunity Campus – in 2023. At the Opportunity Center on the Campus, Goodwill will collaborate with partners to provide career coaching, job training, youth mentoring, soft skills training, restorative justice programs, expungement services, second-chance banking, free drop-in childcare and dental services for residents in the area.
The Opportunity Campus is the largest mission-related project in Goodwill’s history. In addition to Goodwill’s one-stop resource center, Norton Healthcare announced it will build the first hospital in West Louisville in more than 150 years on the Opportunity Campus. Collectively, the two projects on the campus will bring more than 300 full-time jobs to West Louisville with average salaries of approximately $60,000. The Opportunity Center on the campus is expected to serve more than 50,000 people every year and help place more than 600 job seekers into full-time employment with businesses throughout the region that pay a minimum of $13 per hour – creating a cumulative annual impact of $18.7 million.
Goodwill has also revamped and rebranded current resource centers as Opportunity Centers and established new locations throughout the commonwealth. Currently, the nonprofit operates Centers in nine Kentucky communities: Bowling Green, Corbin, Elizabethtown, Louisville, Lexington, Morehead, Paducah, Pikeville and Somerset.
Without its generous donors, none of these projects to reduce poverty would be possible. To help support the Opportunity Campus, Goodwill asks all donors who are interested in donating monetarily to support its capital campaign, “Opportunity is Knocking.” The campaign has a goal to raise $15 million by the end of 2023 to help fund the projects that will serve Kentucky’s most underserved communities.
Here’s how you can donate:
- Visiting GoodwillWestLouisville.com
- Texting GoodwillKY to 801801
- Mailing a check to the Goodwill headquarters located at 1325 S. 4th Street, Louisville, KY 40208
These donations will support the West Louisville campus specifically. When individuals donate to stores and round-up at the register, they help fund the many programs and services Goodwill offers at its Centers, including but not limited to addiction treatment, job-readiness training, application and resume assistance, digital and financial literacy, transportation and housing assistance, legal and expungement assistance and behavioral, mental and spiritual health support.
To learn more about Goodwill’s impact on the communities it serves or to make a donation, visit GoodwillKY.org.
About Goodwill Industries of Kentucky
Goodwill Industries of Kentucky is a 100-year-old nonprofit organization that operates in 103 of Kentucky’s 120 counties. The organization is committed to using resources from its 67 retail stores to help build pathways out of poverty for individuals who need a hand up in life. In 2022, Goodwill helped place 2,368 Kentuckians into jobs with 877 of its employer partners and inside its own retail stores. Goodwill uses approximately 90 cents from every dollar generated in its retail stores to operate programs and services that help Kentucky’s hardest-to-serve job seekers build the life they desire.