SOMERSET, Ky. (LEX 18) — Three Pulaski County friends have been called to serve, from the heart.
"I love people. I really do," said April Slagle, founding member of From the H.E.A.R.T. Ministry.
What started last July as an idea to provide Bibles to men in recovery has grown into a full-blown nonprofit that is changing lives. From the H.E.A.R.T. Ministry: Helping Every Addict Recovering Today.
Slagle said, "It's kind of mind-blowing when we step back and think about it."
Most of the work is done at home like cooking food and assembling care packages, but it is the conversations downtown where the magic happens. Every Thursday at 7 p.m., the ladies meet in front of the judicial center to provide a little food and TLC to the people who need it the most.
They help about 80-100 people each week at their Thursday night meals, and they have handed out over 700 bags in less than a year. With a background in mental health, Michelle Hancock is also helping connect these men and women struggling with addiction or homelessness to the resources they need.
Hancock said, "Whether it's treatment or housing, sober living or whatever else you need ... it's not just let me get you money, it's the actual overall quality of their life and helping them improve that."
It is the goal of the ministry to not just place a Band-Aid on the issue, but to truly change the lives of these men and women.
And it all starts from a place of love.
Slagle said, "When you show that love, people respond more positively, and it makes someone feel better about themselves no matter what they're going through."
From the H.E.A.R.T. Ministry is a 501(c)(3), and they do run solely on donations. Click here to help or learn more.
They also have an upcoming event, the Hold Your Fork Dinner and Auction, on July 16.
