Hopkinsville’s Salvation Army has been awarded a $705,537 federal grant to support programs that address homelessness in the community.
The award from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will “support critical housing and homeless assistance programs,” said Capt. David Donegan, the local corps officer.
HUD announced the grant late last week. The amount is more than double last year’s grant of approximately $313,000 for the same type of programming.
“It’s a competitive grant,” Donegan told Hoptown Chronicle.
The new grant funding will be used at the local Salvation Army for a “housing first model” that aims to get people into stable, permanent living arrangements.
Donegan described three levels of need. Some people only require a “hand up,” he said. This could be for someone already employed who just needs a rental deposit and first month’s expenses for a fresh start.
The next group includes people with more challenges. They require financial help to first catch up on unpaid utility bills, followed by a few months of rental assistance.
The third group includes individuals with more challenges, including mental illness and addiction. They need extensive, ongoing case management by Salvation Army staff to prevent repeated evictions.
In a press release, Donegan said the grant funding will be for:
- Rapid Rehousing (RRH) Programs
- Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) Programs
- Unsheltered Homeless Set-Aside Initiatives
- Street Outreach Services
The HUD grant money cannot be used for brick-and-mortar projects. It is designed to directly fund assistance for people experiencing homelessness, said Donegan.
“While this funding represents a tremendous investment in our community, it is important to understand that these grants primarily fund direct client services and housing assistance,” Donegan said. “The grants do not fully cover the administrative and operational costs required to deliver these services. Simply put, while HUD helps us house people, we still rely heavily on local donors, churches, businesses, civic groups, and community partners to keep the doors open and make these programs possible.”
The Hopkinsville Salvation Army has developed plans for a new facility to consolidate all of its services under one roof. It would replace the current four-building campus — including an overnight shelter, a worship center, offices, a soup kitchen and a thrift store — on East Seventh Street in downtown Hopkinsville. However, finding a location for new construction has been difficult.
The Salvation Army does not want to build anywhere that doesn’t have community support, said Donegan. Locals have consistently said they do not want a new shelter in the downtown area. Each location that came up for consideration, including one that the city of Hopkinsville offered to donate, was ultimately passed up because of opposition from neighbors.
“We own the property we are on now and we could tear down and rebuild there, but we want to be good neighbors,” Donegan said.
According to HUD’s Point-in-Time Count, which is a snapshot conducted one day a year to gauge homeless numbers across the country, in 2025 there were 103 people experiencing homelessness in Christian County. Of those, eight were unsheltered. Numbers from the 2026 count, which volunteers and agency workers conducted in late February, have not been released yet.
Donegan and his wife, Capt. Brittney Donegan, are preparing to leave Hopkinsville for a new assignment in South Carolina.
The new corps officer, Maj. Jason Swain, will arrive in late June. He’s currently assigned in Paducah.
The local Salvation Army also has an advisory board, whose chairman is Sam Burke, of Hopkinsville. The board is designed to have 24 members, and currently there are eight openings. Anyone interested in serving on the advisory board should contact Swain after he arrives on June 22. His number will be 270-269-5414.
Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. Brown was a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era, where she worked for 30 years. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board past president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition. She serves on the Hopkinsville History Foundation's board.
