Laura Carr

Executive Director, Lexington Rescue Mission

Laura Carr is the Executive Director of the Lexington Rescue Mission. Prior to taking on that role in August 2020, she served as the Chief Operating Officer (2019-2020) and as the Development Director (2007-2019). Before joining the staff at the mission, Laura worked on the Urban Impact team at the Lexington Leadership Foundation, as the interim children’s pastor at The Rock La Roca, as a field development coordinator at United Way of the Bluegrass, and as a general assignment reporter for a daily newspaper in Indiana. She also served for one year as a Housing Counselor through AmeriCorps at the Lexington Rescue Mission. 

Laura earned her B.A. from Valparaiso University in Indiana, where she majored in communications and English. In addition to her work at the mission, Laura is a professional grant writer and teaches classes on how to find and write grants through her company, Grant Services of Lexington. She is a Certified Fund Raising Executive, and she is an active member of the Bluegrass Chapter of the Association of Fund Raising Professionals. She serves as Chair of the Board of Directors for the Fayette County Emergency Food and Shelter Program, and she previously served on the boards of Lex-Care and ROSM.   

Laura is the daughter of the founders of the Lexington Rescue Mission, Jim and Becky Connell. She is married to Jason Carr, who is the Senior Department Manager of the Chemistry Department at the University of Kentucky, and they are members of Saint Patrick’s Anglican Church, where Laura serves on the Vestry and teaches in the children’s ministry.