Communities participate next month

Oct. 21--ASHLAND -- A recently launched pilot program in Boyd County'sWestwood area and Lawrence County'sLouisa and Fallsburg is working to use the individual assets of its residents to create a more opportunistic environment.

The project, based on the nationally renowned Asset-Based Community Development program, is titled Kentucky Community of Sharing. The program was initiated by the state's Commonwealth Council on Developmental Disabilities.

Should the programs in Westwood and Lawrence County be successful, KCS groups will launch in Louisville and Lexington as soon as next year, Westwood Community Builder Corey Moore said.

Moore's cousin Tina Jackson is on the CCDD and a Louisa native. He said Jackson gave up her role on the council to be the project leader for KCS and asked him if to get on board with the pilot program in his native Westwood, a community near Ashland with a population of less than 5,000.

Westwood project

Moore said the program started off small, with only five showing up for the first community meeting. By the second meeting last week, the size of the group doubled. With improved attendance, the group was finally able to have a constructive conversation to pitch ideas and discuss how to move forward.

He said the purpose of the program is to have conversations with as many people in the community as possible, collecting information about everyone's "gifts and talents," and entering that information into what he said was a "database."

For instance, the Westwood project focuses on eliminating prejudices toward people with disabilities while also providing disabled individuals and the elderly with assistance services. Moore said he talked to a community member who is an emergency medical technician. Therefore, he knew she could teach classes on emergency medical care in the community.

Because medical training was an asset, or talent, she could share with the community, he recorded this information into the project's database for future reference. If the group chose to expand these types of learning opportunities, all he would need to do is look up her information in the data collection.

Though he was unsure of exact numbers, Moore said he has conversed with and recorded information from nearly 200 in Westwood.

"The whole point is that most people look at things as two different worlds: our world and the disability world," he said. "It's so disappointing there are people out there who turn their cheek against people with disabilities. ... It (ABCD) is about relating to people, helping people."

Lawrence County project

The Lawrence County project combines groups in both Louisa and Fallsburg.

Lawrence County Community Builder Angie Chaney has been with the project since its inception, like Moore.

Right now, the Lawrence County project is not only tapping the assets of adult community members, but also trying to expand opportunities for children.

She said on Nov. 15 they will host a Kids Music Day for those interested in learning more about music and how to play their instruments.

"It's about sharing your gifts. We feel that there are many kids with a gift for music (in Lawrence County) and some just can't travel far distances for lessons," she said.

Local musicians will come to the music festival to not only play, but also take questions from children. Chaney said this is just a preview of the three-day camp the Lawrence County project is hoping to host next summer.

The pilot programs are financed by the state government and contracted to be in Westwood and Lawrence County until June 2015.

ABCD is a program that began in North Dakota 10 years ago and has slowly spread throughout the state, according to information provided by Moore.

LANA BELLAMY can be reached at lbellamy@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2653. For Twitter updates, follow @lanabellamy_DI.

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