Kentucky Parks & Crafts Poster Series
Poster series celebrating Kentucky’s State Parks
If you grew up in Kentucky, I'm willing to bet you have some pretty amazing memories of visiting at least one of Kentucky's state parks. I know I do.
Every summer when I was a kid , my family visited Jenny Wiley State Park for picnics and family reunions. We'd go see plays at the outdoor theatre, and we'd celebrate my brother's birthday.
My cousin Amy and I cheese for the camera at Jenny Wiley State Park.
My brother opens some sweet Power Rangers gear at his birthday party, as my grandmother looks on. Jenny Wiley State Park.
Our state parks are pretty amazing. They're accessible to all Kentuckians, and they provide free recreation for folks of all ages. The 49 Kentucky State Parks cover approximately 45,000 acres of the Commonwealth, and they are one of only a handful of state parks systems that remain free of charge for users. And that's where things start to get a little odd. We have a lot of state parkland, and only a finite amount of park funding. Only $8 million was allocated to park maintenance from 2005 - 2015; in 2016, the Kentucky State Parks were allocated $16 million as part of a “Refreshing the Finest” campaign which funded projects like the renovation of the then fire-damaged May Lodge at my beloved Jenny Wiley State Park. It is estimated that, at present, the Kentucky State Parks System is still vastly underfunded with a total deferred maintenance for all 49 parks standing at a total of $240 million. We take our parks for granted -- they've always just been there -- but they take serious money to maintain.
The Kentucky State Parks Foundation is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit entity that serves as an independent fundraising, advocacy, and education resource for Kentucky's state parks. The KSPF, which receives no funding from the Commonwealth of Kentucky nor the Kentucky Department of Parks, exists to help the Commonwealth's state parks stay viable. It's a pretty important job, and you can help. You can donate directly to the KSPF, you can become a Friend of your local park by joining a group that donates volunteer hours and financial resources to an individual park, or you can shop the Kentucky Parks and Crafts Poster series to show the world which Kentucky State Park you love the most.
The Kentucky Parks & Crafts Poster Series is comprised of 16 art prints, priced at $20 each, which celebrate some of Kentucky's best-loved parks. I can't wait to hang the Jenny Wiley print and the Cumberland Falls print in my office; both remind me of wonderful childhood memories!
If you'll be in the Louisville area this week, be sure to visit Revelry Boutique Gallery this Thursday, May 24th, from 5:30 - 7 pm for the release party for the entire poster series! If you'd like to win a State Park poster of your own from HerKentucky and Kentucky for Kentucky, keep an eye on my Instagram and Facebook pages. And let me know in the comments below, what's your favorite Kentucky State Park?
Happy Birthday, Miss Dolly!
Celebrate Dolly Parton's birthday with purchase benefitting Imagination Library!
(This post may contain affiliate links. I may receive a small per-click commission on some product links at no additional cost to you! Thank you for supporting HerKentucky.com!)
Dolly Rebecca Parton was born January 19, 1946 in Sevier County, Tennessee, the fourth of twelve children born to a subsistence farm family. Dolly's family may have been poor, but she had dreams of doing something great. "I went to bed hungry many nights as a child," she's said. "It was a Dream that dressed me up when I was ragged, and it was a Dream that filled me up when I was hungry. Now it's my Dream to see that no child in this world ever goes hungry." When Dolly began making money as a singer and songwriter, she and her husband Carl Dean provided for her younger siblings. As much as her prolific songwriting career -- she just was awarded two Guinness World Records for her long-lived success -- Dolly is known for her amazing sense of humor, over-the-top style, and her kindness.
Now, y'all know that I'm basically obsessed with Dolly not only because of her amazing songs (Jolene is my favorite!) and her amazing films (9 to 5 and Steel Magnolias both had a huge impact on my early life!) but also because of her graciousness and kindness. I love that she's embraced all her fans and made Dollywood an inclusive, LGBT-friendly workplace. I love that she's providing preschool children around the world with books through the Imagination Library. And I love that she never forgets where she came from. Robert Harling, who wrote Steel Magnolias, recently recalled Dolly's amazing attitude on the film's set in a Garden and Gun article. While the film's other ladies were complaining about wearing heavy Christmas sweaters in the Louisiana heat, Dolly kept her cool, both proverbially and literally:" The women were dressed for Christmas, and Dolly was sitting on the swing. She had on that white cashmere sweater with the marabou around the neck, and she was just swinging, cool as a cucumber. Julia said, 'Dolly, we’re dying and you never say a word. Why don’t you let loose?' Dolly very serenely smiled and said, 'When I was young and had nothing, I wanted to be rich and famous, and now I am. So I’m not going to complain about anything.'" I mean, that's a lesson we could all take to heart: remembering the blessings we actually have.
Draper James Dolly Tee
To celebrate Dolly's birthday, our friends at Draper James are donating all of their online and in-store proceeds for the day to Dolly's Imagination Library. Y'all, this is seriously one of the coolest initiatives ever. Miss Dolly founded the Imagination Library in 1995 to provide books to the children of her hometown Sevierville, Tennessee. Dolly's mission to ensure that children had access to high-quality, age-appropriate books, regardless of household income, was designed to honor her own father, whose circumstances in the Appalachian hills of Tennessee led to his never learning to read or write. Over the past 22 years, the Imagination Library has mailed more than 100 million books to children in Australia, Belize, Canada, United Kingdom and the United States. This service is completely free to the recipients, y'all! Over 1600 communities are served, and over 1.1 million children have registered! Here in Kentucky, there are over fifty Imagination Library affiliate programs. You can register your child aged 2-5, regardless of household income, if you live in an area supported by the Imagination Library.
I LOVE my What Would Dolly Do tee from Draper James, and I want the tote bag so badly. Celebrating Dolly's birthday AND helping kids have access to books sounds like a win-win reason to order it, doesn't it?
Do y'all love Dolly as much as I do? Tell me your favorite Dolly song or role in the comments below!
#herkentuckycares Simple Ways to Make a Difference Today!
Easy ways to help your community!
Today, I had the wonderful opportunity to visit Dawne Gee of Wave-3 to talk about the #herkentuckycares initiative. It was so amazing to be able to share the blog's mission for 2018, and especially to talk with someone as inspirational as Dawne!
For those of y'all who are new to HerKentucky, or who haven't been following #herkentuckycares on social media, I really want to use social media to engage Kentuckians to do good deeds over the next few weeks. I've teamed up with a great group of Kentucky businesspeople to "reward" the good deeds you share on social media. You can learn more about #herkentuckycares here.
I think that, so often, so many of us want to do something to help others but get caught up in the idea that it takes a lot of time, money or effort to really effectuate change. The thing is, there are so many small things that you can do that can add up to a big difference. Here are a few of my favorite ways to help out my community. As an added bonus, some of these activities can redirect the "too many consecutive snow days" cabin fever we're all currently experiencing!
1. Clean out your linen closet for the Humane Society! Did you know that your old towels and blankets could be keeping shelter animals warm? I try to take donations of ragged towels, old bedsheets, and past-their-prime blankets to my local Humane Society a couple of times a year. This process keeps your linen closets clean and helps a furry friend in the process!
I happened to be on Wave3 Country on the same day as Waylon, who is a Kentucky Humane Society Resident. Waylon hopes y'all will donate old bedding to KHS to keep him and his buddies warm!
2. Tie a scarf around a high-traffic tree. I love this idea, which I've seen on social media several times. If you'll be in an area where there's a high homeless or housing-insecure population, why not leave a couple of extra scarves or blankets out so that they can keep someone warm?
3. Raid your travel toiletry stash! Those travel bottles of shampoo and lotion that you brought home from hotels and then never, ever used -- you know you have them. They'd be put to good use at a shelter for women and children!
4. Clean out your coat closet! Most of us have coats that don't quite fit, or that we just don't quite wear anymore. We're having a cold, cold winter and that Christmas present you never really liked could save someone's life!
5. Weed out your bookcase! I try to make an effort to take books I'm no longer using to my local Little Free Library. It's such a great way to know that you're helping spark new ideas for everyone!
Remember to tag photos of good deeds on Instagram and Facebook with #herkentuckycares for the chance to win a gift card to Starbucks, Target, or Heine Brothers and let me know in the comments if you have any other suggestions of simple ways to help others.
Thanks so much to Louisville Salsarita's, Jennifer Stetzler Interiors, Yoga Instructor Ryan Bratcher, Realtor Kacy Noltemeyer, Liz Toombs of PDR Interiors, Jennifer Stetzler Interiors, and Realtor Russell Smith for their generous contributions!! Tag your social media pictures with #herkentuckycares for more ways to do good!
Make-a-Wish #BIGwishgala
This weekend, my friends and I attended Make-a-Wish Foundation of Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana's Big Wish Gala.
Several of my friends from the Younger Woman's Club of Louisville are Wish Granters for Make-a-Wish, so I'd heard about some of the amazing opportunities that local kids had been granted. Still, I wasn't prepared for how amazing and emotional it was to hear the Wish Kids talk about getting to visit Tahiti or meet Apple's Tim Cook.
The Gala was truly lovely (and trust me, I go to enough of these things that I'm pretty hard to impress!) The Seelbach was an elegant backdrop for dinner dancing, and raising money. In fact, the event raised over $184,000 for Make-a-Wish!
I love that Make-a-Wish helps make dreams come true for children with life-altering diseases. I was particularly moved by how many of the wish kids and their parents described the Wish as a time to "just be a kid" or a time to "not have to think about cancer." So many of us take our health and good fortune for granted; it was sobering to hear the Wish families talk about the gift of normalcy that their children had been granted!
If you'd like to make a time or monetary donation to Make-a-Wish of Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana, please visit their website. Also, please take a moment to watch this video of a precious toddler from Eastern Kentucky who wished to go to Disney World.
Special thanks to Shircliff Publishing (and their unofficial mascot, Willie!), for sponsoring our table! It was such an incredible night to hopefully help wishes come true.
More about Make a Wish:
Maker's Mark Give Cozy, #GetCozy Holiday Tour
Help others stay warm with Maker's Mark's #GetCozy Holiday Tour.
I hope y'all are having a great holiday season!
The truth is, by this point, most of us have had a little too much to eat, and have received more presents than we possibly can use. And, we're all probably looking for a little more closet space to hang that new coat or jacket that we just love.
The fabulous folks at Maker's Mark can help y'all out! Throughout December, a Maker's Mark truck has traveled across the country on the “Give Cozy, #GetCozy” mobile coat drive. The Maker’s Mark Give Cozy, #GetCozy truck is a donation site for lightly used or spare jackets and coats, all of which will go toOne Warm Coat, a non-profit organization which provides those in need with a warm coat free of charge. The Give Cozy, #GetCozy truck will have some treats for you, including hot chocolate and Maker’s Mark inspired gingerbread cookies. I hear there might even be some Maker's swag on board as well!
Louisville is the final stop in the Give Cozy, #GetCozy Holiday Tour. You can find the Maker's Mark truck at restaurants, bars, and Liquor Barn locations all this week.
Check out the Maker's Mark Give Cozy, #GetCozy Tour at these stops here in Louisville this week:
• 28-Dec 2:00pm – 7:00pm Liquor Barn Springhurst, 4301 Towne Center Dr.
• 28-Dec 8:00pm – 9:30pm Hilltop Tavern, 1800 Frankfort Ave.
• 29-Dec 12:00pm – 5:00pm Liquor Barn Hurstbourne, 1850 S Hurstbourne Pkwy.
• 29-Dec 6:00pm – 8:00pm Garage Bar, 700 E Market St.
• 30-Dec 12:00pm – 2:00pm Liquor Barn Hurstbourne, 1850 S Hurstbourne Pkwy.
• 30-Dec 6:00pm – 7:30pm Drake's, 3921 Summit Plaza Dr.
• 30-Dec 7:30pm – 9:00pm Martini’s Italian Bistro, 4021 Summit Plaza Dr.
For folks who do not have a coat on-hand, but would like to Give Cozy to #GetCozy, One Warm Coat® will offer a text-to-donate option in which every dollar raised translates into two warm coats for those in need. To make a donation, text "COAT" to 80100 to donate $5 to One Warm Coat. (Standard data and messaging rates may apply. For additional information please visit mobilegiving.org or onewarmcoat.org/privacy.)*
Maker’s Mark will also be working with select retail liquor stores to place coat donation bins on-site for those looking to drop off a coat.
Follow Maker’s Mark on Twitter @MakersMark or MakersMark.com/Holiday-Truck-Tour page to stay up to date on the Give Cozy, #GetCozy truck stops and please make sure to visit OneWarmCoat.org to learn more on how to #warmamillion people with new and gently worn coats.
Joining a charity club is soooo not for me.
Today's charity clubs aren't your mother's league.
Oh, you know, I'm not one of those women. Joining a charity club is soooo not for me.
Yeah, I've heard that a lot. And yet, I never really know what it means.
I'm sorry. I didn't know you were busier than this Phoenix Junior League member.
Does it mean that you think you're too serious and important to waste your time with silly little women's clubs?
Well, Julia Child and Sandra Day O'Connor were both Junior League members; if your work is more important than "First Celebrity Chef" or "First Female Supreme Court Justice", I'd really like to see your résumé.
Does it mean that you don't want to help others in your community?
This year alone, the Charity League of Paducah presented a check totaling $25,600 to Easter Seals West Kentucky. The Younger Woman's Club of Louisville awarded over $40,000 in grants to 17 deserving 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations in the Louisville area. The Junior League of Lexington awarded $30,000 to five deserving Lexington agencies. The Junior League of Louisville raised over $50,000 for area agencies. That's close to $150,000 raised in one year solely by female volunteers from four charity organizations in three key Kentucky cities, granted to some of the Commonwealth's most deserving non-profits. A safe estimate is that these organizations' rosters combined total a membership of less than 600 women. That's around $250 raised per Kentucky woman per year to make a difference in the lives of their fellow Kentuckians. Obviously, you wouldn't want to be a part of that, right?
Does it mean that you don't want to strengthen your professional network?
I've been a member of several different women's charity organizations over the years, and I can safely tell you that most of them have been run with a higher degree of precision and accountability than most Fortune 500 companies. That's because a lot of the members of these clubs were, in actuality, qualified to run Fortune 500 companies. Modern women's clubs count physicians, attorneys, educators, financial analysts, entrepreneurs, and work-at-home mothers among their ranks. When charity club women congregate, you're more likely to hear legal and financial advice, medical referrals or analysis of your child's IEP than gossip or tips on upcoming boutique sales.
Does it mean that you're afraid you won't see "women like you" there?
I promise you, attending a charity club meeting isn't going to look like a scene from The Help. You're going to find a diverse mix of women of various backgrounds and ethnicities -- accomplished, well-educated, professional women. Some of us are work-at-home mothers, others are entrepreneurs, law partners, and surgeons. Here in Louisville, you're also likely to find an impressive group of bourbon professionals. But, you probably won't find any beehive hairdos.
Your grandma's Junior League
Today's Junior League of Louisville.
My dear friends Emily Ho and Nanci House are proud volunteers of the Lexington League.
Does it mean that you don't want to see your favorite Kentucky bloggers?
HerKentucky contributors Emily Ho (Lexington Junior League) and Sarah Holland (Charity League of Paducah) are charity club members. I am a past member of the Lexington and Louisville Junior Leagues, and currently sit on the Board of the Younger Woman's Club. We all firmly believe that the training and networking opportunities afforded by these clubs have played a crucial role in our professional success.
Have I changed your mind?
- Younger Woman's Club of Louisville is accepting applications through this Friday, August 14th. A Meet and Greet Happy Hour will be held this Thursday, August 13th, at 5:30 p.m. at Tony Boombozz in St Matthews, where you can learn more about the YWC.
- The Junior League of Louisville is accepting applications for their August provisional class. A Recruitment Open House will be held this Thursday, August 13th, at the Junior League Office (982 Eastern Parkway)
- The Junior League of Lexington will accept applications for 2015 membership from October 1st to October 31st.
- The Charity League of Paducah is currently accepting applications for membership. Email them at charityleagueofpaducah@gmail.com for more information.
- The Junior League of Cincinnati will accept new applications in the spring. Email them at membership@jlcincinnati.org for more information.
- The Junior League of Owensboro will accept new applications in the spring. Contact them at info@jlowensboro.org for more information.