On the Road
Together, We Can Change Lives — One Child at a Time
A Hope In Action Fund message from our our President and Chief Executive Office Ronald H. Carter
Dear Friends, I want to tell you a story about a special young lady named Anna.* Anna lives in Kentucky and is a senior in high school. She is an ambitious girl who has always dreamed of a better life for herself — better than the life she had become so accustomed to as she was growing up. As one in a family with seven children, Anna’s home was chaotic. She had no personal space, […]
Looking for the Bigger Picture
Long-time sponsor Laura DeCook reflects on her sponsorship experience
When I received an email earlier this year from sponsor Laura DeCook about a bake sale fundraiser she was hosting, I was thrilled to hear about her efforts to help her sponsored child, Caroline*, beyond her monthly sponsorship contribution. What I didn’t realize at the time was just how much more Laura was doing when it came to being involved in Caroline’s life — and the lives of other children as well. I would soon […]
Attending, Learning and Graduating
Our volunteer coordinator at Boyd County High School works hard to make sure her students succeed
Students in attendance at Boyd County High School in the small rural town of Cannonsburg, Kentucky are fortunate to have their resource center volunteer, Vickie, in their lives. Thanks in large part to Vickie’s efforts, the school has a high success rate — much higher than many other schools in Eastern Kentucky. As of last year, 93% of students at the school graduate within four years, and 65% enroll in some type of higher education. […]
Pride in Her Students
Our Coordinator praises children at Ponderosa Elementary School for giving back
For years, Catlettsburg, where our affiliated sites Catlettsburg Elementary and Ponderosa Elementary Schools are located, was known as “The Gate City” because it was here that barges were loaded with coal to be shipped down the Ohio River to other ports. The decline of the coal industry in Kentucky and West Virginia has severely diminished the city’s economic importance, and commerce is now minimal. Today, this area of Boyd County, Kentucky suffers from high rates […]
Two Schools, One Volunteer Coordinator
At Fairview Independent Schools in Eastern Kentucky, our volunteer coordinator has a large workload
Fairview Independent School comprises two campuses, Fairview Elementary and Fairview High Schools, located just a few blocks apart from each other in the small community of Westwood, Kentucky. Like many communities in Eastern Kentucky, Westwood has suffered significantly from the decline of the coal and steel mining industries that used to dominate this area. At one point, Armco Steel employed the majority of the Westwood workforce and made it a prosperous town. Today, only 1300 […]
Backpacks Full of Food to the Rescue
More than 100 children at Boyd County Middle are part of the school’s Weekend Backpack Feeding Program
Boyd County Middle School is located in the isolated and rural town of Cannonsburg, Kentucky. Like many of Kentucky’s Eastern Coal Field communities, Cannonsburg has suffered significantly from the decline of the coal mining industry. At the height of the coal operations, Boyd County was an essential and active port city for the transport of coal along the Ohio River. Today, many of its residents live in dismal poverty. Illiteracy and high dropout rates are […]