Why start a new organization?

A Letter from a Founder:

Chelsea Kirk

So…..what is the purpose of founding yet another organization?

Kentuckians For Good is my response to a deep-running problem that I’ve been quietly watching for years: hostile political division. I don’t have to explain it to you, because I’m sure you experience it for yourself every day: our teams are formed, the trenches are dug, and we hurl insults at each other on social media…..without really doing anything. No one’s mind is changing. There’s no effect on our daily lives. But our hatred for each other continues to grow.

Meanwhile, you go to the grocery. You pick up your kids from school. You pay the electric bill. All the while interacting with people who could sit on all ends of the political spectrum, and you’d have no idea where. Because you’re just neighbors, going about your day, living your life.

Hostile political division is dangerous. It grinds conversations about almost all topics to a halt. It isolates us from one another. It’s not how we’re meant to live.

I believe that our current political paradigm of Red vs. Blue is not working. We use our political party designation to instantly decide if we like someone or not, if we think they’re a bad person or not. And I’m talking to both Democrats and Republicans here. The reality is that the government is meant to be a tool for OUR USE, for us as citizens to decide how we want ourselves to be governed. To descend into name-calling while avoiding having hard conversations about how to address our problems is to relinquish our agency in governing ourselves.

And so, I wanted to start an organization that would call to my fellow Kentuckians to get out from behind the computer and look your neighbors in the eye. Talk to them about how you feel about an issue, and why you feel that way. And listen when they tell you their own position. I don’t want to see another Facebook meme about whatever your political team is on about this week, and especially not if you’re not involved in your community at all to address the issues that you’re happily posting about online.

Community (a group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common) and culture (the customs, arts, social institutions, and achievements of a particular nation, people or other social group) are things that we build, and we build together. Our communities and our Kentucky culture are living things. We shape them and guide them. YOU are contributing to your community and our culture right now, whether you intend to or not, by how you treat the other people that you interact with in your life.

Kentuckians are hardworking. We are proud. We are loyal. We are self-sufficient. I invite you to get out from behind the keyboard and get back into the real world to talk with your neighbors. You’re going to be uncomfortable sometimes. But I am fiercely proud of our Commonwealth, of the truly incredible gift that is our state and the people in it. And I am confident that we can work together to build a better, more peaceful world in which to live, and in which to make a living, and a life.

United We Stand. Divided We Fall.

Chelsea Kirk

Co-Founder, Kentuckians For Good

So…how does this work?

You’ll notice that we don’t have any political stances posted on the website. That’s because we advocate for policy that is designed by the people who are affected by and working to address a specific issue.

Our policy model looks like:

1. Meet with members of a community to discuss an issue they are having.

2. Host town halls and working sessions with stakeholders like individual citizens, local businesses, religious groups, non-profits, unions, first responders, and many more to learn how the community wants to address the issue.

3. Propose SMART legislation. (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Specific)

Kentuckians For Good is truly non-partisan: our goal is not to implement our own personal beliefs around the state, but rather, to support our own communities in solving problems the way that community deems appropriate.

We intend to build relationships with a variety of organizations that are committed to addressing the issue at hand, even if we personally disagree with them on another topic.

For example, if we are working to address hunger in a community, we would strive to work with all individuals and organizations that also want to address hunger in that area, even if we disagree on other issues, like gun control, for example.

We also believe that working with people you wouldn’t normally talk to, due to these differing political views, helps us humanize one another to each other. If we are willing to put some of our views aside and focus on the topic at hand, we can make real change in the lives of our neighbors.

We don’t care what your political party is. If you want to help, come on down. :)

  • We are a truly non-partisan organization. We are not affiliated with any political party, and we welcome anyone who wants to improve daily life for Kentuckians to work with us.

  • Currently, our founders volunteer their time and personal finances to cover our activities. We are in the process of applying for 501c3 Non-Profit Status and eventually will accept donations from community members, if they would like to support our work.

  • We officially launched our organization in July 2025, and so, for now, we operate in Fayette County, where our three founders live. However, we will work in any county in the Bluegrass, as long as we have good partners on the ground. Please contact us by email if you would like to discuss a challenge you’re facing in your county.