Best-selling author Mo Isom, a former All-America soccer goalkeeper who overcame adversity while growing up in a single-parent household, spoke to a packed house during the Education Builds Hope Luncheon, held May 10 at The Carrick House to benefit The One Parent Scholar House.
Keynote speaker Mo Isom talks with Lexington attorney Kim Dawahare and guest during the 2018 Education Builds Hope luncheon / Photo by Theresa Stanley
With sponsorship by Don and Mira Ball with assistance from the Cathy Jacobs and Don Jacobs Sr. Charitable Foundation, The One Parent Scholar House is an agency administered by the Hope Center that provides single-parent families with affordable housing, as well as opportunities for higher education and child development.
While living at one of the 80 apartments, families receive affordable housing, as well as on-site childcare and counseling. Parents complete academic or vocational training course work as full-time students, while children attend the Child Development Center or, if they are older, a local school. There are currently 77 families with 111 children being served by The One Parent Scholar House.
It was also the first Education Builds Hope Luncheon held since the passing of Don Ball, who died in March. The event included a special video presentation and moment of silence for Ball, as well as for board member Terry Mobley, who also passed away earlier this year.
A builder and philanthropist, Ball was instrumental in the founding of the Hope Center and the continued success and expansion of its programs over the years.
Don Ball and Cathy Jacobs at the Education Builds Hope luncheon in May 2017.
“To Don, every person was a person and each one’s story mattered,” said Carrie Thayer, the Hope Center’s director of development. “He had a unique ability to focus on each person and truly listen.”
Formed from the merger of the Community Kitchen and the Horizon Center, the Hope Center opened its doors in 1993, offering 150 beds and emergency shelter for men. Over the years, the Hope Center has grown offer an array of facilities and services, including an employment program, transitional and permanent housing, addiction recovery and outreach, and shelter for as many as 800 clients a night.
The Hope Center’s two apartment complexes, with a total of 84 units, are consistently full; and the center recently broke ground on an additional complex of 48 apartments for men.
A thriving, growing agency, Hope Center offers more than just programs. It is a community of compassion, support, accountability, and hope to its clients that transforms the lives of many in Fayette County.
To undergird the work of the Hope Center, Ball realized the need for a broad based and committed community of support. He kept center information packets in his office and rallied the Lexington business community as supporters, advocates, and board members. He developed fundraisers and outreach events like the Ball Homes Night of Hope.
“In countless ways, Don Ball’s vision and dedication propelled the Hope Center to grow and thrive,” said director Cecil Dunn. “The Hope Center probably would have had to close its doors decades ago if not for Don Ball.”