Their stories tug at our hearts and it doesn’t take much for us to see ourselves in them. The loss of a job, an untimely death in the family, a general downturn in luck, divorce, sickness – and suddenly what seemed to be a stable world is upside down and there’s no money to pay bills or buy food – then even no place to sleep and nowhere to go.
They’re called by many names, some unfairly uncomplimentary: street people, vagrants – even bums. But most aren’t, they’re simply those down on their luck and “homeless.” Their numbers are growing, too, as the economy of our nation remains shaky. They are men, women and children who, like the Biblical Job, have lost most everything but life and some cling precariously to even that.
Friday night, in its second offering of the young season, the Frankfort Arts Foundation will host a benefit concert for the service organizations in our town offering help to those in need like Robert, 7:30 p.m. in Bradford Hall on the Kentucky State University campus.
The event will feature music by Hurley Ridge and Alyssa Meece with proceeds going to the Access Soup Kitchen and Men’s Shelter, the Franklin County Women’s Shelter, and the Salvation Army. All these giving groups have reported marked increases in the calls for help from those in need – including the homeless, the abused and those finding there’s just not enough to put food on the table.
Ticket information may be found below.
“My Mom had to have surgery on her back, and she got pneumonia. I was fighting with my parents. I moved to a friend’s house, and I got my high school diploma. Then I worked at a farm for three and a half months. I came to Frankfort to live with a friend, and it didn’t work out. I came to ACCESS. I want to go to college. I want to go to KSU.”
– Michael’s story
“Imagine what it would be like to not have coffee and breakfast, running water, a roof over your head, or even a pillow to sleep on,” said Linda Brown, executive director of the ACCESS Soup Kitchen and Men’s Shelter. “This harsh reality is a daily experience to some men, women, and children in our community.”
The Frankfort Area 10 Year Plan to Reduce Chronic Homelessness recognizes that “at-risk citizens may be just one paycheck or one illness away from being homeless.” This plan, which was spearheaded under former Mayor Bill May’s administration, is available at City Hall.
Although the designation of homelessness may seem self-explanatory, in actuality, it is more complex. In 2003 the Kentucky Council on Homeless Policy created working definitions for homeless individuals, chronically homeless individuals, and individuals at-risk of becoming homeless.
Brown insists that the men who stay at the ACCESS Soup Kitchen & Men’s Shelter are like other people in the community in their hopes and desires. They are friends to people and are helpful. They have dreams, and they want to live their dreams. Life has just presented them with an overwhelming set of life-altering circumstances, and they are “surviving.”
“Life is not fair,” she said.
The world of the homeless is a different world to most of us. A good day is having a place at the shelter and a meal at the soup kitchen. At the 14-bed Men’s Shelter, men are up and eating breakfast at 7:30 a.m. and, then, out on the streets looking for work until lunch at 11:30. They go back out after lunch until 6 p.m. Then they shower and go to bed. The shelter is located at 311 West Second St.
“I came from Lexington. I was in a group home for 11 years. I didn’t like it. It had bugs, and everybody wanted to start fights. I just couldn’t do it. They put holes in the walls. I came to Frankfort and moved into a residential site. Then I came to ACCESS.”
– Jesse’s story
Where do the homeless like Robert, Michael and Jesse stay overnight?
They can spend the night at the various shelters in town, but the need for beds outweighs the capacity. “People live near the river beds, bypasses, garages downtown, and on the streets,” said Brown.
Frankfort has a network of social service organizations and shelters that provide services to the city’s homeless people. There are community partnerships with the shelters, as well.
“People in Frankfort are wonderful. Everyone wants to help, but they may not know how to help,” said Brown. “We are in the business of building lives. There is a difference between a house and a home.
“What is a home? Home is family life, friends, work, heat in the winter, air conditioning in the summer, one or two cars, clothes, education, entertainment, and support groups. People who are here do not have these. It’s not just having a roof over their heads. Most of them don’t know what it’s like to have stability.”
Although the men have some opportunities through the center, Brown’s hope is for 10 or 15 businesses to create job experiences for the men in the shelter.
“If we could get enough people to come and get the men, provide work or service opportunities for them, and then bring them back to the shelter, it would give them a purpose and a reason to get up in the morning. They would be so excited about this.”
Men in the shelter will be attending the FAF benefit concert Friday.
“We will have a night out at the arts and enjoy some great music and food. In fact, this will be our first night out,” Brown said. “They will really enjoy this.” Plans are to attend other programs, such as the motivational speakers and other arts events, during the year.
The Women’s Shelter
“The Franklin County Women’s Shelter opened its doors in March of 2008,” said Jill Robinson, president of the Franklin County Women’s Shelter Board of Directors. “The program was established to fill a gap in services in this community.
“The Simon House provides shelter to women who are pregnant, or have children under 12 and we house single women and women with children over 12. We can provide shelter to 12 women and we rarely have an empty bed, in fact we always have a waiting list of women who want to enter the program.
“The Shelter shares a caseworker with the Council on Family Abuse which helps victims of domestic abuse. They have a safe house in Frankfort in an undisclosed location. We are pleased to work in partnership with the Council and the Simeon House to provide shelter to homeless women in this community.
“The concert at KSU is one of many events that help us to keep our doors open. We are blessed with strong supporters who give generously of their time and money. We could not survive without them.”
The Frankfort Arts Foundation and Kentucky State University, in cooperation with the KSU Research and Demonstration Farm, present “A Benefit Concert for Frankfort’s Homeless Citizens,” 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 11, Bradford Hall on the Kentucky State University campus. Music is by Hurley Ridge (Bluegrass) and Alyssa Meece (country).
Event tickets are $15/adult, or $10/adult with a canned good(s), and $5/ full-time student or child. FAF season tickets and Homeless Benefit event tickets are being sold at Farmers Bank (downtown location only); Nature’s Way Health Foods, 1100 U. S. Highway 127 South; and M. Simon Furniture, 200 Limestone St. Tickets will be sold at the door beginning at 6:30 Friday.
For information about the benefit or tickets, call the foundation at 330-2773, 875-4ART, or email faf@dcr.net.
All proceeds will go to the ACCESS Soup Kitchen & Men’s Shelter, Franklin County Women’s Shelter, and the Salvation Army.
FAF season ticket holders participate in Dinner & The Arts. They receive 20 percent off dinners on Friday at the following restaurants: Adelia’s Bakery & Café, Capital Cellars, Cattleman’s Roadhouse, Graviss McDonald’s of Frankfort and Versailles, Jim’s Seafood on the River, KSU Dining at Kentucky State University, Miguel’s, O’ Charley’s, Pizza Inn, Shoney’s, The HoneyBaked Ham Company & Café, The Office Pub & Deli, and The Terrace at the Capital Plaza Hotel.
Hurley Ridge and Alyssa Meece will provide music for Friday night’s program. Here’s a bit about each:
Hurley Ridge is a well-known Frankfort area Bluegrass band featuring the Hurley family and Paul Eldridge. The group is known for its original and authentic Bluegrass mountain music.
From humble beginnings in the hills of Jackson County (where even obtaining musical instruments would be difficult) to 2009 when Hurley Ridge released its all-original compact disc entitled “Hurleyriginals,” this band has come a long way.
Starting with the Mac Wiseman Bluegrass Festival at Renfro Valley to the group’s first compact disc released in 2004, “Lost Track of Time,” this group has received significant airplay, good reviews, and special recognition. In 2005 this award-winning band received the Frankfort Arts Showcase Award. They have shared the stage with Ernie Thacker, The Lewis Family, Seldom Scene, Mountain Heart, Valerie Smith and Liberty Pike, and Rhonda Vincent.
Glenn Hurley is the mandolin and guitar player. Amy Hurley is the bass player. Kent Hurley plays the banjo, harmonica, and guitar. All sing lead and harmony vocals and write songs for the group. Eldridge plays rhythm guitar and sings lead vocals, also. Hurley Ridge will perform Bluegrass and Christmas music for the concert.
Visit www.hurleyridge.com.
Alyssa Meece has been singing country music since she was two. She is now 15 and a freshman at Western Hills High School. She is the daughter of Jeffrey and Denise Meece of Frankfort.
Meece’s love of music was inspired by her grandparents, Polly and Norman (Bubby) Moore. They ran a jamboree that fueled the singer’s love and knowledge of the country and gospel music genres.
At the age of nine she began performing in front of live audiences and has been doing so ever since. She has sung in Frankfort, Shepherdsville, Paris, Harrodsburg, West Point, Cynthiana, Corydon (Indiana), and Nashville.
Meece has been working with the Frankfort Arts Foundation for the past four years, and says she “loves every minute of it.”
She is an honor student and participates in KMEA Chorus, All State Chorus, Young Democrats Club, Pep Club, Tri M Music Honor Society, Women’s Choir, and Franklin County Teen Court. The young vocalist loves to sing in the styles of her favorite artists: Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn.
She “loves Frankfort and believes the Arts in Frankfort are a way to enrich the community with knowledge and togetherness.”