At a Summit on Philanthropy conference last fall, the Kentucky Philanthropy Initiative’s President Joe Clabes introduced associate Kyle Lake to Judi Gerding, president of The Point/Arc of Northern Kentucky.
Lake’s Prosper Media Group of Lexington is producer of a KET educational awareness series featuring nonprofits, “kNOwMORE.” KPI provides nonprofit affiliation services to Prosper for the series.
Gerding had been invited to the annual conference to tell the story of The Point/ARC and its successful job-creation strategies that put hard-to-employ individuals to work by providing job-training and caring supervision. The Point laundry is a model Social Purpose Enterprise, and KPI has launched a state chapter of the national Social Enterprise Alliance which promotes these businesses with a social purpose.
Gerding’s presentation was so inspiring that Lake’s creative wheels turned to a natural path.
The stories of successful “social purpose businesses” would be a great subject for one of his “kNOwMore” episodes.
And that is how Judi Gerding and The Point/Arc became part of the 12th episode of Lake’s series which will air starting this week on KETKY: Wednesday, April 8 at 10:30 p.m. and Thursday, April 9 at 7:30 p.m.
“Imagine waking up every day and not being able to work; never having the opportunity to earn a living,” Lake says. “Everyone should have the ability to be employed, right? Individuals with mental health problems are just as productive, and employers who hire people with mental health problems report good attendance, punctuality and job tenure.”
The 12th episode, featuring nonprofits creating jobs, begins with Covington’s The Point ARC of Northern Kentucky, which provides educational, residential, social, and vocational opportunities for individuals with intellectual/developmental disabilities. The episode also includes Lexington’s Opportunity For Work & Learning (OWL), which serves to create a world without barriers to employment, by partnering within communities to educate and equip individuals with the skills needed to reach their vocational goals. Host Brian Simmons, will also interview patrons at the Dress For Success Fashion Show fundraiser.
The three featured nonprofits gathered at the OWL facility in Lexington on Friday to get a special preview of the show and celebrated with cake and refreshments made available by OWL president David Boggs.
In order to motivate people to find their passion for helping, the kNOwMORE Nonprofits educational television series provides current, informative and educational overviews of impactful nonprofits located throughout Kentucky, recognizing that without these nonprofits the health and stability of our communities would be at risk.
More information can be found on the show’s website, or by calling 888.528.1999. More information about the Kentucky Philanthropy Initiative at its website.
