By David Zoeller, Paducah Sun, 1/25/2021

Although faith-based recovery organizations Lifeline Ministries, serving men since 2004, and Ladies Living Free, have been operating jointly since 2007, a rebranding of the two under one banner last year has benefitted both. Last July, the two programs announced a new name, Lifeline Recovery Center, and despite COVID-19 complications, enjoyed a banner fundraising year, said Ashley Miller, executive director.

“One thing we kept hearing was that we were suffering from an identity crisis. Because the public didn’t know if we were one entity or two,” Miller said. “So, just to grow community awareness and simplify who we are and what we do, we underwent the rebranding. Lifeline is who we are, recovery is what we do, and center gives a name and a place for our clients to recover. “It’s been a success when it comes to relating the two and who we are in the community, so I think that was a great idea.” she said.

More than 500 people from 24 counties in four states applied for addiction treatment during 2020, Miller said, while “most of our clients are from McCracken and surrounding Purchase counties, we have applicants from more than 200 miles away.”

Because of capacity and budget constraints, only about 150 (men and women) applicants can be served in the nine-month addiction treatment program.

*Following the construction of a men’s dormitory last year, Lifeline Recovery Center is building a new one for 30 men, expected to be open this summer.*

“Addiction is raging, with Kentucky in the nation’s top 10 for addiction and overdoses,” Miller said. “Everyone knows the pain it causes, so we are dedicated to fighting this disease.” Miller points to the hiring of a fundraising consultant in early 2020 as being instrumental, particularly with the impact of COVID-19 on the center’s in-person services.

The center’s largest fundraiser, its annual banquet, was a concern since in the past it normally brought in approximately $65,000 to $75,000, and would have to be virtual. “We are operating 2021 with a million-dollar budget, so whenever you’re talking about losing a potential $75,000, that’s a big portion,” she said. “We were hearing about all these virtual events, but we’d never performed one. Nobody on the staff, none of us had.” Working with their consultant, a fundraising strategy was developed that included, among other things, seeking donations that would be matched dollar-for-dollar.

The nonprofit organization relies on charitable donations for more than 75% of its budget. “We budgeted, honestly, about $20,000 (for the event), thinking if we could scrape that up it will be a success,” she said. “We ended up raising $92,000 off of the virtual banquet. That was a big key to how successful we were.”

A month after the banquet, the organization had its annual golf outing at Paxton Golf Course, with safety protocols. The event raised more than $30,000, doubling its normal golf outing revenue. “It’s been quite interesting to see the community support, even in the midst of a pandemic,” Miller said.

Following the construction of a men’s dormitory last year, Lifeline is building a new dorm this year that will house 30 men, expected to be operational this summer.

Miller credits the staff and volunteers with making the transition to providing virtual training via Zoom. A large donation from Computer Services Inc. at the end of 2019 of projectors and laptops helped connect facilitators conducting classes with clients.

“I never want to look like I’m taking the credit, because we have an amazing team, I couldn’t be more proud of them,” she said. “Whenever the pandemic hit, everybody was uncertain. Clients were uncertain about what was going to happen, but because of their (staff and volunteers) ability to lead in the right direction, they were able to ease the anxiety.

“It (COVID) really added a lot of stress, but it has also showed that God’s really out in front of us and he’s been good to us,” Miller said.