For the last 18 or so months, officials and board members of the Pennyrile’s fast-growing foster-related Joy Closet have been diligently working to develop “Hope House” — a safe, comforting property for children that need a place of refuge upon immediate removal through Child Protective Services.
Founder & Executive Director Heather Gray was nearly overcome with emotion during Thursday’s presentation with the Hopkinsville Kiwanis Club — when she was able to confirm that, as of Wednesday correspondence, Legacy Metals LLC has stepped forward to build the facility.
Now, all that’s needed is a secure, secluded, secret ½-acre tract of land on which to build.
A floor plan has already been delivered, and construction will begin once a location is determined.
The difficulty, she said, comes from the need. In the last two years, placement of teens has taken some time — and in some instances, there have been uncomfortable, gut-wrenching, waits in hotels, state parks, or similar transient locations.
Hope House, she affirmed, will change this experience for the child and social worker alike.
Gray said that there is strong potential for a future community forum hosted by Joy Closet, where concerned citizens and support groups can come together to discuss not only the Hope House, but also to hear stories and talking points from Child Protective Services.
She recounted one such tale Thursday, when an unnamed social worker had to take in nine children from Todd County at 11 PM, and under dire circumstances.
Gray also said that because state officials have been working diligently to keep families and kinships together, foster numbers have recently been on a slight decline in west Kentucky in the last couple of years.
But she noted fostering and re-homing exists mainly due to neglect and drug abuse.
CPS workers and a security guard are required to stay with children until they are placed or are in school, which Gray assured means they would stay together at the Hope House.
Located on Belmont Hill in Hopkinsville, Joy Closet serves all nine counties of the Pennyrile, as well as Montgomery County in northwest Tennessee. For the last two years, it’s been 95% community funded and 5% grant funded.
Since its inception, more than 750 children and 250 foster/kinship families have been assisted, and last year, its Eagle Fly Program — pairing adults with aging-out teens — has placed 20 mentors with 10 mentees, four of which that are either attending college or are choosing to after high school.
In 2023, more than 575 children were served in some way, with more than 1,000 shopping trips, more than 9,900 articles of clothing, more than 370 packs of underwear, more than 380 packs of socks, more than 750 pairs of shoes, more than 130 coats, more than 2,200 toiletry items, more than 330 blankets, more than 1,500 toys, more than 10,700 diapers, more than 23,240 baby wipes and more than 75 beds.
