What do you get if you mix the human ingredients of need, challenge, compassion and love? If stirred with a gentle hand you get hope. Hope can come in many forms; a baby’s smile, a child’s laughter, a new job or the spring flowers as they poke their heads up through a late snow. In the case of many that suffer from the disease of addiction, hope comes in the form of the Beacon House in downtown Louisville.
The Journey for Don & Jeanne
Don and Jeanne Blackburn planted seeds of hope back in 1997 and they sprouted into a facility that provides hope every day for fifty men in recovery. The need was a safe place to continue recovery for their son. The challenge was to find that place. The compassion and love was the driving force that addressed that need and challenge. There was no place in Louisville for someone fresh out of treatment to get the additional help and guidance needed to cross that bridge from addiction to a respectable and productive life.
Beginning the Beacon House
Don and Jeanne reached out to the community and found the love, compassion, and funds to build hope. The Beacon House provides a positive, safe and structured atmosphere of compassion, respect, caring, contact, and support for the residents. By using accountability, encouragement, mentoring, coaching, and training, each man is taught to build a self-directed, solid foundation of recovery and life skills, so they can become happy and productive people in and out of the Beacon House.
“If I had a nickel for every time someone said to me that the Beacon House saved their life, I could build 10 more houses and easily fill them”, said Russ Read Executive Director. “We’re the last stop on the continuum of care where one prepares to take that final step into a long-term sober life”.
Addressing Addiction in Kentucky
The disease of addiction is very prevalent in Louisville. Kentucky ranks third in the U.S. in reported opiate overdoses, and Jefferson County ranks first in in the state in that same category. Although there was a decrease in overdose deaths in 2022, substance abuse is still prevalent in the Commonwealth. The Beacon House plays an important role in reducing alcohol, substance abuse, and death by engaging, educating, and empowering those with addiction in their lives.
The Beacon House is a 501(c)3 organization serving the greater Louisville area and surrounding counties. You can find us on Facebook and our website is beaconhouseky.org. For more information, please contact Russ Read, CEO, at 502-581-0765 or [email protected].
Don and Jeanne continue to play an important role at the Beacon House and in the lives of the men we serve. We invite you to help us as we light the way home for men and families.
