Louisville, Ky. – Goodwill Industries of Kentucky will collaborate with several local organizations to provide COVID-19 drive-thru testing for West Louisville residents on Saturdays, April 18 and April 25 from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. at St. Stephen Church, located at 1018 South 15th Street in Louisville.
“Local and national reports indicate that African Americans are dying at a disproportionate rate from COVID-19,” said DeVone Holt, VP of External Affairs for Goodwill Industries of Kentucky. “Providing testing in West Louisville – where African Americans account for approximately 76 percent of the population – will help people determine if they have the disease, so they can take the necessary steps to help protect themselves and those in their personal networks, ultimately preventing more deaths.”
Goodwill joins The Mardrian Group – a local construction company owned and operated by Frank and Teresa Bridgewater – in providing resources to support novel coronavirus testing that will be administered by volunteer healthcare professionals associated with the Hope Wellness Center – a West Louisville medical office operated by the nonprofit Black Community Development Corporation.
The group has secured two types of COVID-19 test kits that will be used to determine the status of any of the approximately 60,000 residents of West Louisville, many of whom are highly susceptible to die from the virus.
All West Louisville residents who arrive to be tested will initially receive a rapid response test that takes approximately three minutes to determines a person’s preliminary status. If that rapid response test appears positive, residents will be given an additional swab test that will be processed within several days by the University of Louisville’s research laboratory for confirmatory results.
“As an organization, Goodwill’s mission is to enhance the quality of life for all Kentuckians, specifically for vulnerable populations. For this reason, we felt this initiative aligned well with our mission and we are proud to work with each of the partners in this effort to fight off the coronavirus where it is likely to do the most damage,” said Holt.
Additional drive-thru novel coronavirus testing dates in West Louisville will be scheduled on an as-needed basis to ensure as many residents as possible know their status and are advised on the precautions they should take to protect themselves and others.