No Title 673

Kentucky co-op leader honored

Long-time Kentucky electric co-op leader J.K. Smith has been named to the Cooperative Hall of Fame. Smith served for 10 years as general manager of Fleming-Mason Rural Electric Cooperative based in Flemingsburg, and founded the Kentucky Association of Electric Cooperatives, which he headed for 20 years. He also served as the first governor of the National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation from 1970 to 1979. Smith helped organize CFC, as it is known, which is a $20 billion co-op that provides financing for electric co-ops across the country. Smith lives in Florida and attended the induction ceremony this spring in Washington, D.C. The Co-op Hall of Fame honors “heroic” contributions to cooperative business. It is housed in the Washington, D.C., offices of the National Cooperative Business Center; highlights of each member can be found at the Web site www.heroes.coop.

Home tunes

A pair of Kentucky music CDs appeals to varied Kentucky traditions. Folksinger-songwriter Michael Johnathon has released Homestead, a collection of 16 acoustic and vocal performances about the idea of home with songs about what home means in Kentucky, things like love, dreams, America, sunrise, and suppertime. Johnathon also produced The Best of the UK Pep Band, 18 tracks including the University of Kentucky fight song, the Austin Powers theme, and of course, the late Gov. Happy Chandler singing My Old Kentucky Home. That disk is a fund-raiser for the pep band. You can get those CDs at music stores, the WoodSongs General Store at www.woodsongs.com, or phone (800) 903-7638.