LOUISVILLE, KY. – Goodwill Industries of Kentucky recently received a $500,000 grant from the Jewish Heritage Fund to help build its Opportunity Center in West Louisville.
The grant will be used to help construct Goodwill’s 124,00 square-foot resource center in the Parkland neighborhood that will house a collection of social service agencies that offer free career coaching, job training, youth mentoring, expungement services, restorative justice programs, second-chance banking, free drop-in childcare and dental services to West Louisville residents.
“We are fortunate to have visionary philanthropists in this community like the leaders at the Jewish Heritage Fund who recognize the value in supporting causes that help people build self-sufficient lifestyles.” said DeVone Holt, chief external affairs officer for Goodwill Industries of Kentucky. “This generous gift moves us closer to our goal of raising $15 million to establish a beacon of hope in a community that has been notoriously underserved for decades.”
The $50 million West Louisville Opportunity Center will be the largest showcase of the holistic approach to service that Goodwill has established for job seekers working to overcome barriers to employment that include addiction histories, justice-involved backgrounds, education deficiencies, limited employment experiences, childcare challenges and lack of access to reliable transportation.
Through its partnership with other social service agencies that will be co-located on the 20-acre campus, Goodwill expects more than 50,000 people will be served at the Opportunity Center every year. The nonprofit organization also anticipates helping to place more than 600 job seekers annually into full-time employment with businesses throughout the region that pay a minimum of $13 per hour.
“Helping Goodwill build its Opportunity Center allows the Jewish Heritage Fund to contribute to the revitalization of West Louisville through a trusted partner that has 100 years of experience helping people live better lives,” said Jeff Polson, president and CEO of the Jewish Heritage Fund. “We also appreciate knowing that this gift will help facilitate a collaboration of other nonprofit organizations we support that will be co-located together in Goodwill’s West Louisville Opportunity Center.”
In addition to housing Goodwill’s social services and programs, the West Louisville Opportunity Center will include Big Brothers/Big Sisters, KentuckianaWorks, Volunteers of America, Park Community Credit Union, the Kentucky College of Barbering, University of Louisville School of Dentistry, Legal Aid Society and the YMCA as co-located partners. In a separate building on Goodwill’s Opportunity Campus, Norton Healthcare will open the first hospital in West Louisville in more than 150 years.
Goodwill expects the campus to create an annual economic impact of $18.7 million in West Louisville – a nine-neighborhood community where the median household income is $21,000 for the majority African American population of 65,000 residents.
In June 2022, Goodwill broke ground and began construction on the campus. Construction is expected to be complete in late 2023.
Last year, Goodwill launched a capital campaign, “Opportunity is Knocking,” to raise $15 million by the end of 2023 to help fund the 124,000 square-foot, comprehensive Opportunity Center that is being built on its Opportunity Campus.
To learn more about Goodwill’s move to West Louisville and its $15 million fundraising campaign, visit www.goodwillwestlouisville.com.
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.
About the Jewish Heritage Fund
The Jewish Heritage Fund is a grantmaking organization established in 2012. Over the past 10 years, the Jewish Heritage Fund has made gifts totaling over $83 million to more than 110 non-profit organizations focusing on improving adolescent health outcomes in our community, strengthening Louisville’s distinction as a center for leading-edge medical research, and fostering a robust and dynamic Jewish community.