jbarkley6

A night at the ballpark gave OOA foster families, children, parents, and staff a chance to sit side by side, cheer together, and enjoy a shared community outing beyond the routines of daily life. This past weekend, members of the OOA community attended a Louisville Bats baseball game together, bringing children, foster parents, biological parents, and staff into one relaxed setting. The event offered more than baseball. It created space for connection, conversation, and simple fun, all in the...

Some moments stay with you because they are quiet, honest, and impossible to ignore. I recently sat along the back wall of a county jail and watched a reentry group speak to people who were preparing for release. There was no stage. No polished script. No distance between the message and the messiness of real life. Just a group of individuals using their own experiences, hard-earned wisdom, and personal talents to reach people at one of the most important turning points in their lives. I sat...

Some classes stay with you long after the chairs are stacked, the pencils are gathered, and the door closes behind the last person. For me, the classes I facilitate with incarcerated parents are those kinds of classes. I look forward to each one. That may surprise some people, because the setting can be heavy. There are rules, barriers, locked doors, and stories of pain that cannot be softened with easy words. Yet inside that space, I often witness something deeply human: parents trying to...