Lend-A-Hand Center Expands Services with Solar Investment

By Blake Jackson

For nearly seven decades, the Lend-A-Hand Center has served as a trusted source of support for residents along Stinking Creek in Knox County, Kentucky.

Founded in 1958 by teacher and farmer Irma Gall and nurse-midwife Peggy Kemner, the organization grew from their shared commitment to helping neighbors through acts of compassion and service.

According to Ariel Fugate, Communications Manager at Mountain Association, Kemner often traveled long distances on foot or horseback to assist mothers in labor, while Gall helped build roads and bridges, cared for livestock, and grew food. Together, they welcomed families, shared meals, organized Sunday school, 4-H, and day camp programs, and assisted residents with home repairs and other hardships.

Today, the Lend-A-Hand Center continues that legacy by operating a healthcare clinic and a food pantry that remain vital resources for the community. Led by co-directors Charles and Diann Carnes, the nonprofit depends heavily on volunteers who organize donations and operate a twice-monthly pantry serving about 300 people.

“We were having to turn away donations – things that people around here can really use, like new doors and windows, you name it,” said Charles.

To lower operating expenses and improve storage capacity, the center is installing solar panels and battery storage on a newly constructed building with support from the Mountain Association, Kentucky Office of Energy Policy, The Nature Conservancy, Solar Finance Fund, and Invest Appalachia.

Volunteers began construction in April 2026, using lumber milled from trees harvested on the center’s 500-acre property.

“This is a generational investment,” said Kathryn Engle, Lend-A-Hand board member. “With this, our overhead will greatly decrease and we’ll be able to invest even more into the community and into our programs.”

“This project shows how energy savings can be a powerful tool for strengthening communities,” said Josh Bills, Senior Energy Analyst at the Mountain Association.

“The solar and battery system will provide reliable power, greater energy security and lower operating costs, allowing them to focus on serving families through whatever challenges they are facing.”

Photo Credit: gettyimage-jamesbrey