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CASA of the Heartland Executive Director Michelle Kail says if she had to pick one word for the organization in 2024, it is “growth.”

“At the start of 2024, we were serving in two counties,” Kail said. “We had picked up LaRue County as part of our service area in August of 2023, and then in 2024 we picked up three additional counties to include Meade, Breckinridge, and Grayson counties.”

Kail presented a recap of the organization’s activities in 2024 to the Elizabethtown City Council during their work session Monday. After picking up those three counties following the dissolving of Tri-County CASA, Kail says 98 volunteers served 265 children across the five-county region, but there is still work to be done.

“We still have 65 children who are waiting for a CASA volunteer, so our waitlist consists of children that our local family court judges have appointed us to, but we don’t yet have a volunteer to take those cases,” Kail said.

Kail says if you are unable to volunteer as a court-appointed special advocate there are still ways to support the organization such as serving on the board, donating, attending CASA events, and joining the Friends of CASA program.

“Those are individuals who maybe don’t have the capacity to serve as an advocate for the children, but they still have the heart to help and have some time, just maybe they are not able to make the commitment to serve as an advocate, but maybe want to help with event planning or clerical work,” Kail said. “We scan a lot of papers in the office.”

Upcoming events include the CASA Loves Community Luncheon on February 11 and the Light the Night 5K on May 9. Visit casaheartland.org for more information.

The Stephen Foster Drama Association will be hosting auditions next month for their upcoming summer productions.

In-person auditions for The Stephen Foster Story and The Sound of Music will be held Saturday, February 22 at Nelson County High School in Bardstown. The drama association says they look forward to welcoming returning performers and new faces to the amphitheatre at My Old Kentucky Home State Park this summer.

Audition time slots are available on a first come, first served basis. Interested participants should reserve a time by emailing stephenfosterstoryauditions@gmail.com with the subject line “Local Audition Time.” Virtual auditions may also be submitted for principal roles and ensemble dancers. Youth auditioning for The Sound of Music are asked to prepare material listed on the Auditions page at stephenfoster.com.

Following auditions, some participants may be asked to submit additional material via video or to attend a callback. Rehearsals begin on or around May 28.
The Stephen Foster Story runs June 14 through August 9. The Sound of Music runs July 9 through August 6. Visit stephenfoster.com for more information.

The Hardin County Fiscal Court met for their second meeting of the month Tuesday evening.

The court approved an ordinance amending the budget for fiscal year 2024-2025. Hardin County Judge/Executive Keith Taul said the main element of the amendment was to facilitate a federal Community Development Block Grant for Family Scholar House.

“It’s kind of a pass-through that needed to be dealt with for this grant to come to fruition, so that’s $1 million,” Taul said. “So $1 million comes in and then it adds up to $1 million back out again.”

An ordinance amending annual standing orders to pre-approved recurring expenses was also approved, which Taul said was also related to the grant.

County IT Director Aaron Miller presented on the redesigned county website which was prepared with CivicPlus. Miller said the new website offers better functionality with mobile devices and offers features such as a citizen notification feature and a dedicated fiscal court hub.

“The new website is more streamlined,” Miller said. “It’s easy to navigate. The search function works really well, and the menus, instead of having to click on it and click and click and click, it’s right there and you can find it fairly easily.”

Hardin County EMS made 1,391 responses in December, and E-911 answered 4,000 calls. The county issued a proclamation declaring January 28 as Timmy Carr Day in honor of Carr’s 23-year career serving county citizens. Hardin County EMS Director Mark Peterson said the department would not be the same without Carr.

“When Timmy and I started this journey, he told me ‘Mark, I’m gonna give you 110 percent,’” Peterson said. “And I feel very confident that you’ve done that and then some. I want to personally thank you for your leadership, your mentorship, and most importantly your friendship.”

During approval of the consent agenda, Magistrate Kenny Saltsman motioned for a resolution for the termination of the county’s contract with Forever Homes for Paws be acted on separately. The resolution then died without a second.

The Hardin County Fiscal Court will next meet February 11.