HOPE is a ministry of
Jefferson Street Baptist Center
733 East Jefferson Street | Louisville, KY 40203
CONTACT US
Email: hope@jeffersonstreet.orgPhone: 502.584.6543
Fax: 502.584.4377
The Clarksdale Housing Complex was built in 1940 in an effort to address the needs of Louisville’s urban poor. 713 dwelling units and 15 non-dwelling units housed over 3,000 people inside a mere six city blocks. Though intended to be helpful, the congestion of Clarksdale combined with other factors to create a volatile breeding ground for generations of poverty, unemployment and crime.
After decades of seeing the physical and spiritual need of Louisville’s urban poor, the Long Run Baptist Association created plans to start a church in the heart of Clarksdale. In 1964, Jefferson Street Baptist Chapel was built directly across the street from Clarksdale on Jefferson Street. For the next three decades the church attempted to meet the variety of needs within their community through teaching the Gospel and meeting the physical needs of the urban poor.
In the late 90’s, homelessness was on the rise and there was talk of Clarksdale being torn down. As other ministry efforts struggled and numbers dwindled, the church began to receive increasing numbers of people responding to the homeless programs offered. After various changes in leadership and structure, the church began to refocus their mission and ministry emphasis. Functioning more as an urban ministry and not as a congregational church, Jefferson Street Baptist Chapel was laid to rest as a new era of urban ministry took its first breaths.
After incorporating in 1998, Jefferson Street Baptist Center narrowed its focus to minister exclusively to the needs of the homeless. With programs such as the Day Shelter, Fresh Start, PSHP and HOPE, JSBC is always looking for new and fresh ways to respond to the needs and complexities of homelessness.
In 2009, JSBC will celebrate 45 years of ministry to downtown Louisville.
