LOUISVILLE, Ky — After six months in operation, the leaders of Hope Village spent Wednesday sharing their successes at the outdoor safe space, tent community and houseless resource hub.
Their mission is to “bridge the gap between the streets and stable housing.” Angel Todd is the Director of Operations for Hope Village and led the event saying, “The thing that you pull out of that is, it’s transformational, right? It’s what happens when people decide to make a change in their lives.”
In six months time, The Hope Village has received approximately 200 unique referrals for prospective residents and nearly half that number has spent time living there. “We’ve been able to service 91 residents to date,” Todd told a room of staff, partner agencies, reporters and members of Metro Government.
Todd also detailed how Hope Village has adapted its care offerings over the months to better serve couples, and also address the unique challenges facing female residents. To date, the Hope Village has housed 35 female residents. “And when they got to us, we experienced all of that with them, so the domestic violence, substance abuse, human trafficking, all of the things we had to be very aware of,” Todd explained.
The Hope Village reports the majority of residents are men and between the ages of 25 and 54 years old. 700 meals are served on average each week, according to Todd.
Hope Village is a pilot program utilizing millions of dollars in American Rescue Plan money, meaning the future of the village is undetermined as its leaders demonstrate they are meeting a large need in the city.