be part of our second century

SUPPORT OUR CENTENNIAL JUSTICE FOR ALL CAMPAIGN

No longer is a store-front or traditional transactional model of legal service sufficient. To make real change in the lives of low-income Kentuckians, community-based lawyering is essential.

We must listen to our client communities and respond to what they are telling us they need rather than telling our client communities what we think they need; empower our client communities through legal education, self-help, and community economic development; and show up for our clients in the communities where they live, work, and play.  

with your support, Legal Aid Society will …

  1. Continue to provide civil legal assistance to thousands of Kentuckians annually;

  2. Open our West Louisville Neighborhood Office at the Goodwill Opportunity Center in 2023; and

  3. Open our Shelby County Regional Office later this year!

join our century circle

Make a contribution of $1,000 or more to our Centennial Justice for All Campaign. 

Century Circle donors will receive:

  • permanently recognition at Legal Aid Society’s new West Louisville Neighborhood Office (to open in 2023)

  • an invitation to the Grand Opening Celebration

  • recognition as a Century Circle donor in our Annual Report, and

  • a one-of-a-kind work of art created by Flamerun Gallery to commemorate Legal Aid Society’s 100th Anniversary and celebrate your commitment to equal justice.

join our 100 club!

Give $100 more for our 100th year!  Increase your previous gift by $100 dollars this year and join our 100 Club. 

100 Club members will receive

  • special recognition in our Annual Report

  • an invitation to the Grand Opening Celebration of our new West Louisville Neighborhood Office (to open in 2023), and

  • a commemorative 100th Anniversary Legal Aid Society coffee mug. 

HOW CAN YOU HELP?

centennial justice for all campaign committee

CO-CHAIRS

Marjorie A. Farris, Stites & Harbison

Katherine McKune, Park Community Credit Union

Jennifer Adams, Blackburn Domene & Burchett

Rick Adams, Kaplan Johnson Abate & Bird

Christy Ames, Republic Bank

Jason Brown, GE Appliances, A Haier Company

Jeremiah Byrne, Frost Brown Todd

James Craig, Craig Henry

Mandy Wilson Decker, Stites & Harbison

Michael Del Negro, Peloton Interactive

Chuck Dobbins, Tilford Dobbins & Schmidt, PLLC

Bart Greenwald, Duncan Galloway Greenwald

Sarah Osborn Hill, YUM! Brands, Inc.

Bryan Hudson, Atria Senior Living, Inc.

James Irving, Dentons Bingham Greenebaum

F. Ryan Keith, Aetna, A CVS Company

Nick Maraman, Internal Revenue Service

Jeffrey Moad, Stites & Harbison

Michael O’Connell, Jefferson County Attorney

Kendrick Riggs, Stoll Keenon Ogden

John Selent, Dinsmore & Shohl

Ed Stopher, Boehl Stopher & Graves

R. James Straus, Frost Brown Todd

Melinda Sunderland, Morgan Pottinger McGarvey

Joe Ventura, Humana, Inc.

T. Morgan Ward, Stites & Harbison

 

THIS IS WHAT EQUAL JUSTICE LOOKS LIKE.

THIS IS WHAT EQUAL JUSTICE LOOKS LIKE.

  • When “Harry,” a 56-year-old man, came to Legal Aid’s homeless advocacy program, Project H.E.L.P. for assistance, he was living in a homeless shelter with his wife and 2 children. Harry had a long work history, most recently as a telemarketer; but serious back pain, heart problems, and other health issues had kept him from working for more than four years. Harry had applied for disability benefits in 2016 when he was first out of work but he had been denied. He applied again in late 2020 and was referred to Project H.E.L.P. by his case worker.

    Over the next seven months, a Project H.E.L.P. attorney worked closely with Harry, with the state disability agency, and with Harry’s doctors to provide medical evidence for his disability claim. In July 2021, in spite of these efforts, Harry’s claim was once again denied. Harry and his Project H.E.L.P. attorney appealed the decision and worked together to provide additional evidence to support Harry’s claim. In January 2022, Harry was finally approved for SSDI benefits in the amount of more than $1,200/month, plus about $29,000 in a lump-sum back payment. Earlier in the case, Harry and his family had been able to find housing with the help of a local social service agency. By March 2022, Harry was able to finally purchase a car for his family. Harry and his family are now more financially secure and feel able to move on with their lives.


  • Anna is survivor of domestic violence who was homeless and living in shelter when she was referred to Legal Aid Society for divorce assistance. Anna had fled her marriage after her abusive spouse was arrested for strangling and falsely imprisoning her.

    Anna’s attorney represented her in her divorce and moved the case forward to completion as quickly as possible, so that Anna could begin moving on with her life. Anna has since moved out of the shelter and is planning to enroll in school. She told her attorney she couldn’t thank them enough and she is looking forward to what the future holds for her.

  • Vince is a combat veteran who served multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan between 2007 and 2012, after which he was honorably discharged from the Army and diagnosed with PTSD by the Department of Defense.

    In 2019, Vince attempted to apply for Social Security Disability but was denied. His PTSD, depression, and anxiety were severe and he had no way to pay for treatment. He didn’t know what to do.

    That’s when he was referred to and met with Legal Aid Society’s Veterans Legal Assistance Program through Legal Aid’s partnership with the Shively VA Clinic in Louisville, KY. Over two years, Vince and his attorney gathered all of the documents they needed to file for the benefits. Together, Vince and his attorney prepared an extensive Veterans Administration (VA) claim, providing statements from physicians, family, and others to demonstrate that the young man who went to war was different than the hard drinking, drug dependent, angry, and depressed older man who returned. After two years of work and an evaluation by the VA, Vince was ultimately awarded a 20% increase in his VA benefits amounting to a total of $1,500 each month. After several years of effort with the assistance of his attorney, Vince finally received the PTSD rating and accompanying increase in VA benefits he so richly deserved. With these benefits, Vince has the resources to access the remedial help that he needs to return to his life as a productive member of society.