The Chad Lake Foundation

10/15/2026

💙 WORDS MATTER: PEOPLE ARE MORE THAN THEIR PAST!

Did you know the language we use when discussing incarceration can either reinforce stigma or promote dignity, hope, and second chances?

At The Chad Lake Foundation* we believe in using person-first language because no one should be defined solely by their criminal history or incarceration status.

💙 LET'S CHANGE THE WAY WE TALK ABOUT INCARCERATION!

Instead of saying:

❌ Inmate → ✅ Person who is incarcerated

❌ Convict → ✅ Person with a conviction

❌ Felon → ✅ Person with a felony conviction

❌ Ex-con → ✅ Person who was formerly incarcerated

❌ Offender → ✅ Person involved in the justice system

❌ Criminal → ✅ Person with a history of justice involvement

WHY DOES THIS MATTER?

🔹 Language shapes perceptions. The words we use influence how society views justice-impacted individuals.

🔹 Labels create barriers. Stigmatizing language can reinforce stereotypes that affect housing, employment, and community acceptance.

🔹 People can change. A person's past does not have to determine their future.

🔹 Dignity matters. Every person deserves respect, humanity, and opportunities for growth.

🔹 Reentry requires connection. Successful reintegration begins when communities recognize people as individuals rather than labels.

💙 OUR MESSAGE IS SIMPLE:

A person is NOT their conviction.

A person is NOT their incarceration status.

A person is NOT their worst mistake.

Every person deserves dignity, accountability, and an opportunity to build a better future.

At The Chad Lake Foundation, we advocate for rehabilitation over incarceration, removing barriers to reentry, reducing recidivism, and strengthening families.

📢 HELP US CHANGE THE CONVERSATION! Share this post and encourage others to use person-first language. Changing our words is one step toward changing lives!

🌐 www.thechadlakefoundation.org

10/14/2026

🌱 ONE DAY AT A TIME. ONE STEP AT A TIME. ONE CHOICE AT A TIME.

You don't have to have it all figured out today. You don't have to change your entire life overnight. You just have to be willing to make an effort in the right direction.

Some days, progress looks like taking a big step forward. Other days, it's simply getting out of bed, asking for help, choosing recovery, or refusing to give up.

And guess what? BOTH are progress.

Recovery isn't about perfection. Reentry isn't about having all the answers. It's about showing up, making better choices, learning from mistakes, and continuing to move forward, even when it's hard.

Your past doesn't have to define your future. One bad day doesn't erase all the good ones. And a setback doesn't mean your story is over.

At The Chad Lake Foundation, we believe every person deserves hope, support, and the opportunity to build a better tomorrow.

💙 Keep going. Keep growing. Keep choosing YOU.

Because sometimes the smallest step in the right direction can lead to the biggest change in your life.

One day at a time. You've got this!

10/08/2026

Let’s do some good together! 🌯❤️

Join us at Chipotle on Monday, November 23, from 4–8 p.m. for a fundraiser benefiting The Chad Lake Foundation. Chipotle will donate 25% of event sales to support our work helping people and families navigate reentry and build brighter futures.

📍 4911 Frederica St., Owensboro, KY 42301

Ordering online for pickup? Use code A6RNHKV at checkout. You can also show the flyer in the restaurant. Online orders must be for pickup at this location during the fundraiser hours. Delivery orders and gift cards don’t qualify.

Bring a friend, grab dinner, and help support our mission. Every meal makes a difference! Please share!

10/03/2026

Ends October 31st! Thank you to everyone who made a purchase ❤️
https://6w3q0hvv.r.us-east-1.awstrack.me/L0/https:%2F%2Ffundraising.candleberry.com%2F%3Fref=thechadlakefoundation1/1/010001a04468c70c-ced7e30a-7a32-42d7-8348-8dc85ec4790b-000000/al0v2xERygoi7i2AIdJLRWHNK0Q=473

10/01/2026

📣 EXPUNGEMENT FAIR — NOVEMBER 17!

The Chad Lake Foundation is excited to host an Expungement Fair to help individuals remove barriers, move forward, and continue rebuilding their lives.

📅 Tuesday, November 17
⏰ 12:00–5:00 PM CST
📍 Ohio County Park
2300 Highway 69, Hartford, KY

We need our community’s help to make this event a success! ❤️

🤝 COMMUNITY PARTNERS NEEDED
We are looking for organizations and agencies to set up resource tables and connect participants with services that can help remove barriers to successful reentry such as: employment, housing, recovery, education, transportation, healthcare, and other community resources.

⚖️ ATTORNEY NEEDED
We are also looking for an attorney willing to volunteer during the event and assist with cases where Legal Aid may have a potential conflict of interest. If you are willing to donate your time, please reach out to us!

📲 PLEASE PRE-REGISTER!
A QR code is provided for participants to pre-register. Simply scan the code and complete the requested information. Your information will go directly to DOC so your background check can be prepared ahead of time, helping reduce wait times on the day of the event.

Walk-ins are welcome, but we cannot guarantee that walk-ins will be able to be seen because obtaining and printing the necessary background information may take additional time. Pre-registration is strongly encouraged!

🍽️ WE ALSO NEED MEAL SPONSORS!

Our goal is to provide a FREE meal to every registered participant attending the Expungement Fair. We hope to have food trucks available for community partners and others to purchase meals, but we want our participants to eat at no cost.

Would your business, church, organization, or family be willing to sponsor meals for individuals working toward a fresh start?

Whether you sponsor meals, volunteer, set up a resource table, provide legal assistance, or simply help us spread the word, you can be part of removing barriers and creating second chances in our community.

📣 PLEASE LIKE, COMMENT & SHARE!

Tag an attorney, business, church, organization, employer, or community partner who might want to help!

📌 Official flyer coming soon!

Together, we can help people clear barriers, rebuild their lives, and move forward with hope. ❤️

09/28/2026

The Chad Lake Foundation has three clients who need help covering rent and intake fees. Every donation, no matter the amount, can help someone take an important step toward stability and a fresh start.

If you’re able, please consider giving or sharing this post. Every little bit helps. Thank you for supporting second chances and stronger communities. 💙

Donate at

Reentry Services, Advocacy, Promotes Rehabilitation over incarceration, peer support, support groups.

09/25/2026

🏠 COMMUNITY, WE NEED YOUR HELP.

At The Chad Lake Foundation, we believe that a second chance should come with a real opportunity to succeed.

Right now, we do not have grant funding available to cover direct housing assistance. We are actively pursuing funding and have several grant applications pending, but the need in our community has not stopped while we wait.

We currently have individuals seeking assistance with rent and sober-living expenses who are working to rebuild their lives after incarceration and/or substance use.

Housing is one of the biggest barriers to successful reentry.

Without safe and stable housing, it becomes much harder to maintain employment, continue recovery, meet probation or parole requirements, reconnect with family, and build a stable future.

That is where we are asking our community to step in.

Your donation can help us offset rent and housing costs for individuals who are doing the work to move forward. Our goal isn’t simply to pay a bill—it is to remove a barrier, support recovery, reduce recidivism, and give someone a better opportunity to succeed.

Every amount helps. $10, $25, $50, $100 or whatever you are able to give can become part of someone’s second chance.

💙 Ways to Give:

🌐 Online: TheChadLakeFoundation.org

📬 Mail a check to:
The Chad Lake Foundation
PO Box 943
Beaver Dam, KY 42320

💵 Cash App: $BritneyJonesCLF
Venmo: -JonesCLF

We are working hard to secure sustainable grant funding, but until those dollars come through, our community is the bridge between the need that exists today and the resources we are working toward tomorrow.

Please consider:

donating,

sharing this post,

or encouraging a local business,

church,

organization,

or community group to partner with us.

Together, we can remove barriers.
Together, we can support recovery and reentry.
Together, we can offer hope, dignity, and second chances.

💙 The Chad Lake Foundation
Turning loss into purpose and barriers into opportunities.

Reentry Services, Advocacy, Promotes Rehabilitation over incarceration, peer support, support groups.

09/23/2026

💙 HELP US TURN CHAD’S LAW INTO REAL CHANGE IN KENTUCKY 💙

Changing a law doesn’t happen overnight—and it doesn’t happen without resources, collaboration, and people willing to do the work.

The Kentucky Justice Collaborative, founded through a partnership between The Chad Lake Foundation and Lane13 Consulting, is working to build the coalition and strategy necessary to advance Chad’s Law and meaningful correctional reform in Kentucky.

But getting legislation from an idea to the finish line requires much more than showing up in Frankfort.

Funding helps support:

• Coalition building and bringing organizations, families, advocates, and community leaders together

• Legislative and policy research

• Development of legislative strategy

• Meetings with lawmakers and other decision-makers

• Professional lobbying and government-relations work

• Advocacy materials, education, and community outreach

• Travel and expenses associated with working in Frankfort

• Communications, meetings, events, and coalition coordination

• Building partnerships across Kentucky

• Maintaining the long-term strategy needed to move legislation through the legislative process

This work takes time. It takes expertise. And it takes a community.

Chad’s Law was born from loss, but our goal is bigger than one family or one story. We are working to help create stronger standards, greater accountability, and meaningful change within Kentucky’s correctional system.

We cannot do this alone.

We are asking community partners, businesses, organizations, foundations, advocates, families, and individuals who believe in this work to help us fund the campaign behind Chad’s Law and the Kentucky Justice Collaborative.

Every contribution helps us continue building the coalition, doing the groundwork, and advocating for change in Frankfort.

You don’t have to be a lobbyist or policymaker to be part of changing a law. You can help make the work possible.

💙 Support the Kentucky Justice Collaborative.
💙 Help us continue the work behind Chad’s Law.
💙 Help us carry hope and direction into Frankfort.

Together, we can keep pushing for meaningful change in Kentucky.

The Chad Lake Foundation

You can donate online at:
thechadlakefoundation.org

Or mail checks to:
PO BOX 943
Beaver Dam, KY 42320

Reentry Services, Advocacy, Promotes Rehabilitation over incarceration, peer support, support groups.