Greetings, from the road!

The Sowing Resilience: A Bloom Kentucky Listening Tour is about halfway complete. We are making 19 stops in total across every region in Kentucky. We have powerful partners in every region that have been integral to the success of this Listening Tour series. 

Much like the motto used by the fabled Dillon Panthers in the hit TV show Friday Night Lights, our Kentucky Youth Advocates team members are focused and operating with clear eyes and full hearts. We have been blown away by the response in our communities across the Commonwealth. From Georgetown to Hazard to Bowling Green, we have listened to community members and advocates discuss what is at the top of their minds when it comes to Kentucky’s kids and families.

Some of what we heard is no surprise, Kentucky has been impacted heavily by natural disasters, a pandemic, and long-lasting impacts of the opioid epidemic. We are also hearing similar issues come up that all of our Kentucky families are facing regardless of if they live in rural or urban or suburban areas. 

We have made 7 stops so far – in Georgetown, Bowling Green, Hazard, and several regions of Louisville and Lexington – with 4 additional stops this week – in South Louisville, Morehead, Danville, and Covington – and 8 in the final two weeks of June – in Elizabethtown, Winchester, Frankfort, London, Paducah, Lexington, Owensboro, and a final one in Louisville with youth.

See the full list of events and sign up for an upcoming event in your region HERE. 

We will be synthesizing what we have heard from attendees upon the conclusion of our final session the last week of June. The Blueprint for Kentucky’s Children 2024 (and beyond) agenda will be heavily influenced by the ideas and solutions presented to us during the listening sessions. We will also formulate questions for upcoming 2023 election candidate forums based on what we are hearing from attendees. And finally, we are communicating with county leaders as they develop their plans for use of the opioid settlement funds coming to their communities. 

If kid advocates approach this Gubernatorial election and the 2024 state legislative and budget session as they have approached these listening sessions, with passion and optimism and creative solutions, kids and families in the Commonwealth can’t lose. 

Can’t join us but want to support KYA’s efforts to hear from Kentuckians?

Weigh in on those topics you are passionate about on behalf of kids and families through this survey. 

Want to support these listening sessions and the impacts they will have for Kentucky’s kids and families? Make a donation today! 

  • $95 donation covers fuel costs for a trip to Danville.
  • $130 donation covers fuel costs for a trip to Covington.
  • $150 donation covers fuel costs for a trip to Bowling Green.
  • $250 covers fuel and rental car costs for a trip to Hazard.