Look Up Ministries

The Look Up Center was established in 2004 and provides services that support and assist children and adults in Licking County through various programs.  Our mission is to serve the community through Christ centered love, education, and encouragement. 

Each year we serve thousands of individuals in Licking County by providing free emergency dental services to individuals in pain but without dental insurance, free dental hygiene, and oral cancer screenings.  We also offer free eye exams and glasses through our newly established Vision Clinic.   Our doctors and assistants donate their time and talents to provide these medical services to our community. As of today, we have given away $960K in free dental care.

The Look Up Center has a Skilled Trades Employment Program which provides certified construction training through NCCER, a Nationally recognized certificate program that is used by many of the career technology centers and contractors throughout Licking County.  We recently added electrical training to this 15-week course.  Our goal is to introduce individuals who may not know their future career plans, may not plan to attend college, or have recently transitioned out of the justice system with a clear career path and not just “a job”.  We partner with over 20 employers in Licking County to offer job opportunities to our graduates.  We believe that it is important to be a hand up in our community by providing career opportunities in high demand skilled trades positions which help to build confidence while providing high wages and benefit opportunities.   This program also teaches money management, physical health and wellness, mental health counseling, interview skills and resume writing as well as hours of hands-on training. Our instructors donate their time for the students to receive this training free of cost.

In addition to these programs, our Opportunity Store was set up so that individuals in our community could shop for nice things at a reasonable cost.  Our store allows those who shop to have ownership over their purchases while contributing to the support of the Look Up Center. Monies from the store stay within Licking County.  We partner with several foster care organizations as well as those transitioning out of prison and homelessness to furnish their first homes with everything from small appliances, dishes, bedding, furniture, and appliances.  We also have a furniture ministry that picks up gently used furniture and appliances within Licking County.  We are the only organization in the community that carries mattresses and bedding.  Although it requires us to complete training, inspect mattresses and furniture and treat it once in the building, there is a huge need for beds in our community.  If we did not carry these in our store many would go without a bed to sleep on.  

We host many outreach events throughout the year to include:  Annual coat giveaway (over 500 coats, hats, and gloves distributed yearly), Thanksgiving outreach (delivering over 1000 meals on Thanksgiving day to residents in the community without family, with medical conditions, and who are otherwise alone).  Our annual Christmas Pop Up Shop which has served over 400 children and families the past two years with Christmas gifts, stockings, PJ’s and Coats, our 4th of July Bash, several community meals, activity days for children preschool to 5th grade, Teen connect events, and Grandma’s Kitchen which teaches families the value of baking together.  

The Look Up Center is currently conducting a $500K fundraising campaign for an addition to our pole barn and interior upgrades.  We are focusing on energy efficiency and space utilization.  We are currently housed in the old Hazelwood School.  Part of our building is 110 years old and is in dire need of a new furnace.  We are also planning to add an ADA restroom, upgrade all lighting to LED, and upgrade from single pane windows.  We plan to remodel many areas for better efficiency and handicap accessibility.   This expansion and upgrades will allow us to improve current programs and prepare new space for future outreach.