ELIZABETHTOWN, Ky. — Take a drive through Elizabethtown and you'll notice what some consider a sign of the times. "Don't Support Panhandling" messages began popping up last summer.
"Probably the best measure of that effectiveness is that we started a public dialogue. The signs were instrumental in starting a conversation about the issue," said Elizabethtown Officer John Thomas.
Ofc. Thomas said in six months the signs have been up, the number of panhandlers has gone down - to the point some have left town.
"We are not really helping most of these people by giving to them without vetting their stories first and I think that is a great indicator of this program's success," he told WHAS11.
At the same time, Gary Bohannon and his staff at Helping Hand of Hope are keeping busy stocking their food pantry shelves. He's lived in Hardin County for 30 years and over time he's noticed a change in how people are asking for spare change. He says panhandling wasn't an issue years ago.
"I think they've heard others have been successful in panhandling and so they see that as a way to secure funds," Bohannon said.
But, he says some of those panhandlers refuse help. If they really are in need, he says Helping Hand of Hope is willing to extend a hand by providing food and financial assistance for rent or utilities. "There are a variety of resources available in our community, so they don't need to panhandle," said Bohannon.
Others do ask for help. Bohannon and his staff prepare more than a 150 meal boxes a month. For a county that has about 16,000 people living at or below the poverty line, Bohannon says his agency can help so no one has to resort to panhandling.
Ofc. Thomas says the police department will re-evaluate where the city plans to place more of the panhandling signs in the spring.